Smash Chronicles
by dragonsroar
Summary: This is just a collection of different stories that will actually lead into another story I am hoping to publish. And all the Smashers will be present, just not at the same time. Influence Part Eight.
1. Dreamscape Part 1

This is just another of those ideas that popped into my head one day and I decided to write a story about it. This is going to be a four chapter story so I hope you enjoy.

* * *

It was a battle-armored warrior versus a gown-wearing princess in a battle to the finish in the Pokemon Stadium. The two femme-fatales had been going at it for quite some time, casually exchanging blows with one another as they battled atop the ever changing arena. However, from the beginning of the battle, the princess known as Peach had noticed something strange with her bounty hunter counterpart. The armor-wearing bounty heroine seemed somewhat distracted during the fight, never really pushing her advantage, fighting just enough to keep Peach on her toes. Though always calculating and cautious, Samus was not one to hold back when she battled. 

Skidding back from an impending blast from Samus' arm cannon, Peach voiced her concern to the weapon's wielding blonde.

"Are you okay Samus?" she asked, cocking her head to the left to avoid a missile fired by Samus, "You seem...distracted." she commented

"I'm fine." Samus replied monotonously, deflecting a turnip flung by the umbrella toting ruler

"Are you sure?" she asked, swinging her frying pan toward Samus' helmet

"I said I'm fine." Samus restated, blocking the blow with her arm cannon

The two females pushed against one another, but it was Peach who began to gain ground, which was unusually since Samus was much stronger than she. Then she noticed the way Samus' feet were positioned on the ground and realized too late what the hunter was planning. Letting her weight take her, Samus fell to the ground, grabbing hold of Peach's dress and flinging her up and over toward the edge of the arena. As she flew Samus fired a fully charged Charge Shot her way and with no way to avoid the blast Peach was a sitting duck.

"Ah hell." She muttered before being taken out

"_**PLAYER DEFEATED!**_" boomed the announcer, signaling the end of the battle

* * *

"Oh…I lost." Muttered Peach for the umpteenth time since she got back to the mansion 

Losing the battle was one thing, but being so easily tricked was another. Peach wouldn't easily get over this embarrassing loss. Although, that was not her only concern for the previous battle. Her thoughts drifted between losing pathetically and about how the bounty hunter acted during the battle

"Something is definitely wrong with Samus." She thought, not able to shake off the feeling that Samus wasn't her usual self

Albeit, her usual self consisted of her making smart comments, that bordered on rude, and normally keeping to herself. Now Samus was not a shy person by a long shot, nor was she reclusive. She was simply a person who didn't have a determinable personality or a person who was easy to figure out. Nearly a polar opposite to Peach, who wore he emotions like a hat and was genuine a nice, overly excitable person. This lead the princess to try and recruit Samus as "one of the girls" since she and Samus were of the few females who were currently Smashers.

"We girls gotta stick together." Peach would sometimes say, though Samus had her own reply to that one

"Well I guess I'm out." She would say

Peach just didn't get Samus sometimes.

"She never talks about herself, she almost always shuts herself in her room, and worst of all she hates the color pink. WHO HATES THE COLOR PINK?!" Peach yelled in her head

"Could you please keep your thoughts reasonable." She heard in her head, causing her to jump slightly in surprise

Turning she noticed Mewtwo glaring at her from across the couch.

"Oh…sorry about that, I forgot you could hear thoughts." Peach replied, blushing slightly in embarrassment

"Next time, remember to keep quiet!" He barked before turning his attention back to the TV

His mental exclamation happened to travel to the minds of the other Smashers in the room and they turned to the bickering princess and cat.

"At least Samus isn't as bad as Mewtwo." Peach thought

"I heard that." Muttered Mewtwo

"What are you two talking…er…thinking about?" asked Young Link from his position on the floor, a slight yawn escaping his lips

"Pika, pika, pi pi chu?" asked Pikachu, curious as well while he rubbed his eyes

"Yoshi?" muttered Yoshi, he too awakening from what seemed to be a nap

One could say the common room of the mansion was a great place to sleep, but that's for another time.

"It would seem Peach is having thoughts about Samus and her attitude towards her." Stated Mewtwo

"What kind of thoughts?" asked Bowser, sitting on the couch lazily, a couch which could miraculously hold his phenomenal weight, "Would they be involving anything in a bikini and mud-wrestling?" he asked with a grin

_BANG!_

"Perv." Muttered Peach, her frying pan in hand

"Geez, sorry." Bowser muttered, rubbing his sore cheek

"Yeah…so, what's up?" asked Young Link

"Nothing, nothing really. It's just, Samus never says anything." Peach said

"Yeah she does, she talks when I talk to her." replied Young Link, "I mean, she ain't mute."

"That's not what I mean." Peach sighed, "She never talks about herself."

"And you talk non-stop." Replied Mewtwo, "That is simply the bounty hunter's personality." He said

"That's not the point!" Peach yelled, losing her cool for a moment

Everyone in the room took a pause while Peach calmed herself. Peach's emotions were a scary thing. They could change on the fly and if she felt one too strongly they had weird effects. She could bring down the entire mansion if she was mad enough or flood it if she was sad enough.

"All I'm saying is that we hardly know anything about her." Peach replied, breathing deeply to keep herself calm

"What are you talking about?" asked Young Link, "We know all kinds of things about her." He said, "She's a bounty hunter, and has a space ship, and fights evil pirates, and saves the galaxy on a weekly basis!" he proclaimed, "She even blows up a planet from time-to-time!"

"No, I mean about her likes, her dislikes, what she does for fun. Does she have friends or family, what about her past?" Peach asked, "I've asked her countless times and she never tells me anything."

"Maybe because you are intruding on her personal life?" questioned Mewtwo, "Everyone has their own secrets they wish to keep to themselves. You have no right to go snooping." He replied

"Well…maybe, but today, during our match, Samus wasn't acting like her normal self. She was even more reclusive than usual." Peach replied, "My woman's intuition tells me something is wrong."

"Are you sure it isn't just you nosy-nature?" Bowser asked, "Or menopause?"

Peach glared at the Koopa King and he chose not to continue.

"Pika, pika, pi?" asked Pikachu, his natural worry over those he considered allies pushing him to ask about Samus's well being, "Pika, pi?" he asked

"No, she isn't sick…just, something is off." Replied Peach, "I tried asking her during the match, but she said she was fine." She replied, "But I'm not so sure about that. I think I'm gonna ask her again when I get the chance." Replied Peach

"If she does not wish to speak to you, you should not push the matter." Replied Mewtwo

"Oh, what do you know?" she quipped, sticking her tongue out at him

"I know quite a lot." Replied Mewtwo matter-of-factly, "My intellect far exceeds your own, lesser intellect."

"Are you calling me stupid?" she asked

"I didn't have to." Replied Mewtwo

"Why you little freaky cat!" she barked

"I am no mere cat!" Mewtwo barked back, "I am Mewtwo, the world's most powerful..."

"Yeah, yeah, we know, "most powerful pokemon"." muttered Bowser, "Enough already, I can't take you too arguing, especially when I haven't gotten much sleep!" barked Bowser, "I'll go crazy if I hafta listen ta anymore of this.

Peach raised an eyebrow at this, having just noticed something peculiar about the others.

"Actually, now that I notice, you all seem tired." Replied Peach, "Have any of you gotten any sleep?" she asked the group

Having only arrived yesterday, Peach wasn't effected by this strange sleeplessness.

"Well…no." replied Young Link, "Every time I go to sleep I have this weird dream that keeps waking me up." He replied

"Pika, pika, pi pi, pikachu." Replied Pikachu, his answer mirroring Young Link's

"My times of sleep have been short as well, though I already know the reason why." Replied Mewtwo, "It is actually the reason for all of our sleepless nights." He replied

"Which is?" asked Bowser

"Simple." He replied, "If I were to say that all of you have experienced a strange dream that you normally would not have, I would be correct?" Mewtwo asked

Bowser, Young Link, Yoshi, and Pikachu nodded their heads in agreement.

"Could I also venture to ask that this dream has a few factors that are the same throughout?" he asked, "For example, a young blonde female child?" he asked

Bowser, Young Link, Yoshi, and Pikachu nodded their heads in agreement again.

"Now let me ask you, do horrible flashes of traumatic events happen to pop in an out of these dreams?" he asked

Bowser, Young Link, Yoshi, and Pikachu nodded their heads in agreement yet again.

"Now tell me, what conclusion can you come to from my explanation and these dreams?" he asked

"Well, we're all crazy?" Young Link answered

"No." replied Mewtwo

"Pika, pi, pika, chu?" Answered Pikachu

"No." replied Mewtwo

"Yoshi, yoshi, yosh?" answered Yoshi

"No." replied Mewtwo

"This is a big waste of time?" answered Bowser

"No." replied Mewtwo

"You're sensing someone's dreams in the mansion and that's what's keep you up?" Peach answered

"No…I mean yes." Replied Mewtwo, slightly dumbfounded, "How did you figure out?" he asked

"I've dealt with crazy dreams before. Mario once told me he had a crazy dream that involved an evil toad that was allergic to vegetables." She replied, "What really made the dream weird was that the toad lived in a place that was filled to the brim with vegetables. Weird huh?"

"Always knew that plumber was a few wrenches short of a set." Muttered Bowser

"Dreams can be very powerful." Replied Mewtwo, "They also give of signals and the more powerful the dream, the more powerful the signals." He told everyone

"Okay, I get it." Replied Young Link, "I think."

"Pika pi."

"Since these are signals within the mind, I can sense them with my vast and unmatched psychic abilities."

"Modest, ain't he?" quipped Bowser, granting him a giggle from Young Link and Pikachu

"I will ignore the peanut gallery and continue." Mewtwo retorted, "However, these powerful abilities of mine are not without fault, for they work as a two-way street, so to speak. I may be able to sense these signals, however I may also send these signals, much to my displeasure." He replied

"What are you GETTING AT!" roared Bowser, his patience at its rope's end

"Fine then, I will answer for the impatient. Should my mind become overwhelmed with a multitude of powerful signals from the mind, my mind instinctively releases these signals to the outside world in an attempt to lessen the strain caused on my mind from trying to interpret what each signal means. Since these signals do not simply vanish in mid-air they are sent to other minds. Whether they are interpreted or not is not of my knowledge."

"So you're telling me the reason that I haven't been able to get any sleep is because of you and your freaky powers!" roared Bowser, lifting himself from the blessed couch and glaring down at Mewtwo, "I should pound you into paste!" he roared

"I may be the cause, but I am not the originator of the dreams." Replied Mewtwo calmly, undaunted by Bowser's mighty physique

"Then who?" growled Bowser

"We in this room are not the culprits and most of the other Smashers are not in the mansion at this time. However, there is one Smasher not accounted for who I do believe is the true person at fault." Mewtwo replied

"You can't mean…Samus?" Peach asked

"Yes, I do." Replied Mewtwo, "I cannot decipher just what her dreams consist of, but whatever they may be they are very powerful and are the reason we cannot gain any sleep." He replied

"So that means I'm gonna have to have a little talk with Miss Bounty Hunter when she gets back." Bowser replied, "I'll get those dreams to stop."

"I do not believe that an excessive beating will stop this psychological problem." Mewtwo said

"Wait a sec?" asked Young Link, "If you already knew about this how come you didn't stop it?"

"Yoshi yosh?" asked Yoshi as well

"It is not my problem. Besides, I do not need much sleep in order to function properly." Mewtwo replied

"Well normal people do!" Bowser barked

"We Smashers are by no means normal." Replied Mewtwo, "And many of us are not _people_."

"He has a point there." Peach replied

Yoshi, Young Link, and Pikachu nodded in agreement.

"We're crazy." Replied Young Link, grinning from ear-to-ear

Everyone looked at Young Link for a few moments, perplexed looks on their faces, until they nodded in agreement with him as well.

"He's right. But that's not the point!" roared Bowser, "Where is Aran?! When I see here I'm gonna…"

"You're gonna what?" came a voice

Everyone turned to the common room entrance to see the root of their nighttime insomnia standing right there, armor and all.

"Samus!" cried out Peach, feeling the drapes of dread fall over her, "You're here…"

"Yeah, I am." Samus replied, giving no inclination of her current emotional state

"When did you get back…?" Peach asked, "And how much did you hear?" she mumbled quietly

"A few minutes…a few minutes enough." Replied Samus, her eyes narrowing into a glare

"Well then you should know what's coming next." Growled Bowser, stomping over to the bounty hunter

Samus remained undaunted by Bowser's approach, even though the Koopa King towered over her, forcing her glare upward.

"I don't know what your problems are and I don't give a damn. I'm gonna tell you once. Quit you're crazy dreaming or else."

"Or else what, turtle-breath?"

"Why don't I show you?" he said, clenching his fists, "And it's tortoise-breath!" he barked

"Yoshi!" cried Yoshi, jumping between Samus and Bowser

There'd be holes in the walls if Samus and Bowser got into a rumble and Yoshi was not about to let his friends toss each other around like tennis balls.

"Yoshi, yoshi, yoshi, yosh!" he barked at Bowser

"Get out of my way long neck! She wants some of the Koopa King then she can have some."

"Yoshi, yosh!" he yelled

"_Grr_…I don't care if she's you friend, she's going down."

"Yoshi, yoshi, yoshi!"

"I'd _gladly_ go through you."

"_YOSHI!_"

Bowser flinched slightly. Bowser had never known Yoshi to raise his voice to that level, none of the Smashers as a matter of fact. Yoshi was usually a calm creature, as per his nature. But Yoshi would not let Bowser start a fight."

At this point Bowser had some options. He could barrel his way pass Yoshi and assault Samus, immediately causing a fight to break out. But that would involve Yoshi gaining up on him as well and no matter how strong he was, Bowser couldn't handle two Smashers at once and win. His other choice involved him backing down, but Bowser just didn't **back down**. It was beneath him. Then, he had a third choice. He could make it seem like he was going to back down, saving him the trouble of fighting without making seem like he was wimping out. The Koopa King **loved** loopholes!

"You're lucky I haven't gotten much sleep our I'd wipe the floor with you." he growled, purposely glaring menacingly at her, "You got off lucky this time Aran." Grunted Bowser before heaving himself back over to the large couch and seated himself, nearly launching Mewtwo and Peach from it

With that settled Yoshi turned to talk to Samus, but the bounty hunter was already half-way up the stairs.

"Yoshi?"

The dino-dragon quickly followed her up the stairs and to her room. He rushed to the door and luckily caught her before she could close the door on him.

"Yoshi, Yosh?" asked Yoshi

Samus turned to him, took of her helmet and glared at him. Unsure of what this gesture meant, Yoshi simple returned her look with a perplexed one of his own.

"I will tell you this once and only once. I don't need your help, or any one else's. I've dealt with my problems in the past before and I will deal with _my_ problems now. So I will ask you to keep your nose out of my business. Got me?" she asked, her tone leaving no room for questioning

Yoshi simply nodded his head in agreement.

* * *

Hours passed and the night was soon upon the mansion and the residents of the mansion began to wind down, finishing off dinner and getting ready for bed. Young Link and Pikachu were in front of the tube, rotting what little was left of their brains while Mewtwo floated nearby in a meditative state. Bowser had decided earlier that he was going out for dinner, wanting to blow off a little steam from earlier. Samus was hold up in her room and nobody knew what she was doing or dare to find out. Yoshi had decided to take a nap in a strange place, but this nap had turned into full-blown sleep as the dino had yet to awaken. This left Peach in the kitchen, cleaning up, her mind though not on the sudsy dishes in her hands or the running water of the sink or even the fact that a piece of _something_ made a mad dash for the window, but of the bounty hunter who refused to open up when something was obviously bothering her. 

"There has got to be a way for find out what's wrong with Samus. I wish I could just go into her head and...wait a minute…maybe I _can_."

If there was a national record time for dish cleaning Peach would have broke it. The plates didn't even have time to settle in the cupboards before Peach was in the common room, making her way toward Mewtwo. But before she could pester Mewtwo, the aforementioned cat creature beat her to the punch.

"No." he replied

"But I didn't even ask you anything yet."

"You didn't need to. You're emotional state was so high it was a rather easy, if not annoying task to read you mind and discover what you want me to do."

"Well then if you already know then will you?"

"No. I have told you this already. No." he repeated

"Oh please, we'd be helping out a friend."

"No."

"Do it for the moral feeling?"

"No."

"I have catnip…"

"No…how much?"

"Let's just say you might want to put a day aside for this." She said

"No…" he muttered

"I'll throw in a ball of yarn."

"You truly think I can be swayed by a simple ball of yarn?"

"How 'bout a week's supply of cream."

"Deal!"

"Would you mind telling me what you just conned kitty-boy into doing?" asked Bowser as he made his way inside

"We're gonna help Samus!" she cheered

"I'm gone."

"Oh no you don't, we need you too!"

"You do?" asked Bowser

"We do?" asked Mewtwo

"You do what?" asked Young Link

"Pika, pika?" asked Pikachu

"I've come up with a great idea to help Samus with her problems."

"No, it is a very poorly thought plan that involves me and my powers." Replied Mewtwo, "It most likely will end in failure."

"Then why'd you agree with me."

"I have my weaknesses."

"What's this plan?" Bowser asked

"Well, Mewtwo can go into people's minds right?"

"Yeah." Young Link, Pikachu, and Bowser replied

"So I got to thinking, maybe he can put somebody else's mind into someone's mind."

"Okay." All three replied

"So, if he can put my mind into Samus's then I can figure out what's wrong and help her."

"You're plan is screwed up in so many ways." Replied Bowser

"How?" Peach asked

"Well, one, Samus ain't exactly gonna to be willing ta let you into her head, two, we should let the blonde handle her own problems. I mean, why do we hafta go on a moral quest just for her, especially if we don't get anything out of it? And three, I'm gone." Bowser said, heading for the door

"Wait! I don't want to go alone!" Peach cried out, but Bowser wasn't interested

"Normally I'd jump head over heals ta help you princess, but only when it means that plumber gets his. I don't do charity work." He told her

"Oh…" Peach moaned, feeling defeated, until an idea popped in her head, "Please!" she begged, dropping to her knees and clasping her hands together, "Pretty please?!" she begged, her eyes beginning to tear up

Bowser remained an unmoving tower of determination. He would not be swayed by begging or tears. Nevertheless Peach continued to sniffle, looking like a small child being denied the joys life offered. The others watched in amazement as Peach turned from sniffling and whining to full blow tears.

"Erm…No…uhm…" Bowser muttered, trying to keep his unwavering disposition

But Peach was not making it easy on him and even he felt a little ashamed at himself for refusing, especially in the sad, pathetic shape Peach was in.

"You can't…I won't…I refuse to…" he muttered yet again before an irritated growl left his lips, "…fine…" he mumbled

"Yay!" cried Peach happily, all signs of sadness instantly disappearing from her features

"It must be quite profitable to be able to change emotions on the fly like that." Mewtwo thought

"You guys will help too, right?" Peach asked, turning to Young Link and Pikachu

"Pika!" Pikachu proclaimed more than happy to help the blonde bounty hunter

"Sure." Replied Young Link, curious to the going-ons inside Samus's head

"Good, the team is ready!" Peach announced, "Now Mewtwo, how do we do this?"

"Yeah, kitty-boy, just how does this work?" Bowser asked

Everyone stared directly at Mewtwo, awaiting his explanation while the psychic cat stared back, somewhat annoyed at their stares.

"It is quite simple to project one's mind into another's. However, the one receiving the thoughts of another would most likely be able to sense the intrusion consciously."

"So we do it when she's sleep?" asked Young Link,

"That would be the better plan…though I still do not recommend going into Samus's mind. She may grow angry with our intrusion."

"Sometimes you hafta go against what a person tells you to help them." Peach replied, "So come on, let's get this show on the road."

"Very well…though as I have said before it would be better to wait…" he began

Meanwhile…

Samus was feeling a little hungry and thought that a snack before bed would be good. However, as she opened her door she nearly tripped over something large at the foot of her door. Looking down she discovered it to be the one and only Yoshi, asleep on the floor.

"Yoshi…" she growled, ready to yell at the creature asleep in front of her

Though her rage cooled as she saw that Yoshi was oblivious to the outside world, lost in whatever dream he was dreaming and even though Samus was still quite annoyed at Yoshi's earlier intrusion she didn't have the heart to kick him out of the front of her door.

"Ugh…" she moaned, stepping over the large creature and making her way to the kitchen

As she came down stairs an uneasy calmness settled on the first floor. She new the others were still down there, she heard their whispers from the top of the stairs, but the strange thing was that nothing was going on. She half expected a large boom to have occurred since the time she locked herself in her room, but it was quiet. And when it was quiet in the mansion that meant something was going on. She slowly made her way down and peaked inside the common room. She saw Peach, Bowser, Mewtwo, Young Link, and Pikachu huddled in the middle, seemingly discussing something. From what Samus could see this looked very suspicious, but Samus couldn't tell what everyone was talking about.

"You can come out of hiding, I know you're there." Replied Mewtwo

Samus didn't give him the satisfaction that he surprised her, so she put on a mask of monotony and walked in, glancing over everyone.

"I wasn't spying, if that's what you think."

"I never said you were." Mewtwo replied, "May I ask why you grace us with your presence?" he asked

Samus could find no hint of an ulterior motive from the sound of his voice. But since this was Mewtwo he could easily mask his thoughts so she thought she would try someone alittle more see through.

"I was just coming down to get something to eat." She said, looking toward Peach, "Hey Peach, mind helping me in the kitchen?" she asked

"Sure." Replied Peach happily, following the blonde fighter into the kitchen

When they were out of earshot Young Link asked…

"Think she heard us?"

"No, but she is suspicious." Replied Mewtwo

Samus knew she had to play this smart if she was going to figure out what everyone was talking about. She had a sinking feeling it was about her.

"So Peach…" she began, trying to think of an opening line, "About before…"

"Oh, you don't need ta apologize, that was totally my fault. I shouldn't have pried and I'm sorry I got everyone else involved. Your problems are your problems and even if we could help, we shouldn't just push and push. So you just relax and don't worry about it. I promise ta never bring this up again; I just want ta know if we're cool." Peach said, "I mean we live under the same roof so we should be as close to friends as we can, which means we need ta know our boundaries and we shouldn't cross those boundaries. So whatever I have done I am sorry for it and I promise it will never happen again."

Samus's jaw remained in the air for a few moments before she actually responded. Peach took the term "long-winded" to new heights.

"Uh…yeah…okay…thanks?" stuttered Samus, unable to retort with a suitable response

Samus sighed inwardly. Like Mewtwo, she could find no sign of an ulterior motive behind Peach's words and if anything, Peach was not one to lie. The problem was that Samus didn't realize that Peach was one to hide the truth.

Time passed and Samus finished her dinner and headed back to her room to go to sleep. The others were simply sitting in front of the television, wasting away so Samus had no need to be suspicious of their activities. Samus climbed the stairs and headed to her room, stepping over the still sleeping form of Yoshi at her door. If anything, the dino-dragon could sure sleep!

Samus lied on her bed, staring up at the ceiling, her mind racing as she thought about the night she would have. Though she didn't need people worrying over her she was still concern about the nightmarish dreams she was having. Never before had they been so vivid. Whether she would admit it or not, something was definitely off and she would have to eventually figure out just what. With a sigh she closed her eyes and let sleep take her, hopefully to a place that wasn't as disturbing as her dreams were.

"Is she asleep yet?" asked an annoyed Bowser

The Koopa King didn't like this one bit. He was not one for charity but he was a sucker for Peach so he was irritated not only for helping Samus but for being suckered into doing it.

"I'm pathetic." He thought

"Yes, yes you are." Replied Mewtwo

"That was a private thought!" roared Bowser

"Whatever…and to answer you question, yes, Samus Aran is indeed asleep."

"Good, so let's get this thing over with." Bowser proclaimed, "The quicker we get this done the quicker I can forget I was ever generous in the first place."

"You shouldn't be so grumpy about it. You should be happy that you're helping someone." Replied Peach

"Yeah…happy." Bowser muttered

"Well then, is everyone prepared?" asked Mewtwo

"How can you be prepared to jump into someone's head?" Young Link asked

"Those without high psychic powers can never be ready, but I am ready enough for the lot of you." Mewtwo replied

"Thank you, I feel _so_ much better now." Quipped Bowser

"Now then, let us proceed." Replied Mewtwo, "Close your eyes and concentrate on Samus."

The Smashers did as they were instructed and closed their eyes and concentrated on the intergalactic bounty hunter. Soon a picture of her was imprinted into their minds and with that Mewtwo was easily able to connect them to the psyche of Samus Aran. With a slight twitch the Smashers instantly fell into a state of REM-sleep, consciousness leaving them in a flash as they fell into the dreamland of Samus.

* * *

This will be a rather short story itself, but this is only part one in a series of stories involving the Smashers, eventually involving each and every one. 


	2. Dreamscape Part 2

(Before I begin this next part of the story I would like to inform my readers that much of this dialogue was taken from the official manga of the Metroid series that documents the earlier years of Samus's life. I do not own Metroid or anything it affiliates with and I would like to pay the proper homage to this manga. Now with that said and done let's get on with the story. Also a note: Long paragraphs in Italics are narrations done by Samus. This is _her_ dream after all.)

* * *

_Cosmo-Calendar 2000. The galaxy met with a very prosperous age. A governance alliance called the Galactic Federation was established to represent and protect the planets of the galaxy._

A resource ship traveled the cosmos, its destination, home.

_The Federation's spaceship sailed the heavens as a most important caravan of the stars. The prosperity of planetary exchanges and negotiations were all due to this ship, and an energy source for travel was necessary._

It was a routine job for the experienced pilots of the ship for they knew what it was they needed as they approached a nearby planet.

_Planetary Colony K-2L was used in mining crystals. Afloraltite. These crystals were used in fueling the ship's ignition module._

The need for Afloraltite was in high demand in order to keep the peace in the galaxy and these veteran pilots were more than happy to help with that.

_I lived with the mining corps there with my family._

"Hey boss Aran!" called the cheerful voice of one the crew members aboard the resource ship after it had landed on K-2L, "Long time no see! How's it going?"

"Ah!" exclaimed a slightly surprised Rod Aran, supervisor of the Afloraltite mining operation on K-2L, "It's been a long trip, I know, you gotta forgive me for that!" he called to the crew, a small grin plastered on his face, "Okay! Squads six and seven bring in the Afloraltite, hurry it up!" Aran directed, immediately taking charge and moving the miners to fill the resource ship

"Rod!" a voice called, jarring the busy man from his work

"Oh Virginia…what's up?" he asked, somewhat bewildered, "Not at home today?"

"I brought you lunch!" she replied cheerfully, holding up a cylindrical food carrier

"Wh-What?" he responded, flabbergasted, "You came here for that…?" he wondered, a quizzical look adorning his features

"Huh?" Virginia asked, now she being the one confused at her own husband's confusion, "You need to eat too y'know." She replied, "You've been so busy lately that you haven't even been sleeping!!" she said, in a scolding manner

"Ha ha, well…" he replied, feeling slightly embarrassed at his own short-coming, "…There's a pivotal assembly coming up, they'll need this afloraltite." He replied, trying to explain himself to his wife, "It's my part to make sure that the galaxy flourishes!" he replied, feeling a well of achievement rise up in him, "It's more or less impossible for me to quit now!!" he replied, laughing somewhat as his predicament

Virginia smiled, despite the fact that her heart fell at the sound of her husband's words. His duty to others was what she loved most about him but at times it took away from what she thought was really important.

"But don't you also owe it to your family?" she asked, "It's important to keep your promise to them too." She pointed out

Rod could see the mixed look in his wife's eyes. She was proud of him for being so diligent to the federation and its goals for peace, but even so it seemed to take away from his own happiness.

"You're right." He said, giving his wife a reassuring smile, "My promise to love them." He said, bringing her to his side, "Virginia…" he murmured, her warmth giving him a feeling of love and acceptance

Virginia didn't say any more but she knew that no matter what, Ron would never overlook the most important thing in his life; His family.

_Then one day…_

"Ahh, darn!" yelled a voice in obvious irritation, "Give that back, it's mine!" the voice yelled, directed toward a small, rabbit-like creature who held what seemed to be a small backpack, "Leave it, come on!" she half-whined, hoping the creature would return her stolen backpack

The barer of the voice was a young girl with short tousled blonde hair, blue eyes and a sweet, if not slightly irritated look upon her face. She glared up at the small creature that looked down at her with a mixed look of interest and bewilderment from its perch atop a tree. The young girl attempt to leap up the tree even though it was clear she didn't have the ability to. Before she could attempt to break her neck her name was called out, gaining her attention.

"Hey! Samus!" someone called and the aforementioned girl named Samus turned her head toward two children running up to her; a boy and girl

"What are you doing? Big news!" replied the girl

"There something going on to the south!" replied the young boy

Both children ran up to Samus, their faces bright as the sun for the news they had just heard as Samus simply looked on in fascination.

"A new ship showed up!" the girl said excited

"They're arguing about somethin'! With guys called "Choujinzoku!" the boy exclaimed

"Eh?" she gasped in excitement, "Wh-What…?" she mumbled

Not many people came to the colony which made any visit a real treat. Many of the workers at the mine were perplexed by these new arrivals and their strange ship; which needed a particular source of energy.

"What the hell? You want our afloraltite?" one of the workers asked, perplexed toward their strange cloaked visitors

"No, that's not really it." Replied one of the cloaked figures, "I just need to borrow some, quickly!" he quickly explained "…and…I think this is the only place I can get it." He mentioned

"Ah, sorry. What's up?" asked a Boss Aran, pushing through the crowd of workers to see what the commotion was, "What's going on?" he asked

"Oh, Boss Aran, they're…" One of the workers replied

_A few moments later…_

"Now this is a problem…if an observer from the Chairman of the Federation found out…" mumbled Aran, wondering what the consequences would be if he freely gave out the pricy afloraltite, "But the excavated goods are under my control for the federation so it should be okay…" he thought, thinking over the possible outcomes, "What do I do?" he wondered, "What would be a sensible decision for these Choujinzoku?" he pondered, trying to come to a reasonable conclusion

Unknown to the perplexed mining foreman a small trio of troublemakers were making their presence known.

"Ah ha, ha! Wait up Samus!" called out the boy merrily

"No! I'm not gonna lose!" Samus yelled back, giggling, unaware of the figure dead in front of her

_Wham!_

"Urg!" grunted Samus, running full speed into a cloaked figure

The impacted caused the cloaked figure's hood to fall from his face, revealing his true form for all to see. With the head of a bird and blank, yellow eyes this strange creature standing before the young girl was a sight to behold. Samus gasped in surprise over this strange creature, feeling a host of emotions welling up within her.

"C'mere Samus." Her father called, jarring her from her astonishment

"Ah, Papa!" she cried out, knowing full well she was in for it

"I told you to stay away from here!" he yelled, feeling annoyed

"Oh, oh, you okay little girl?" asked the bird creature sincerely, "Are you hurt?"

"Ah…no…" replied Samus, taken back by the strange creature's appearance

The old Choujinzoku sensed Samus's alarm, his own eyes widening in surprised as he figured out what troubled Samus.

"Is this the first time you've seen a Choujin?" he asked

Samus didn't reply and the old bird took this as a yes.

"Don't be afraid." He replied earnestly, "My appearance may differ, but inside…" he explained, "Peace dwells within both your heart and mine just the same." He replied

Samus's expression changed from surprise to content and the old bird continued.

"You can call me "Old Bird"…" he replied "or "Bird Grandpa" is fine too." He replied, "Do you want to be friends?" he asked genuinely

In respect Samus replied properly to the old bird.

"I'm Samus Aran, three years old." She said, and to his question, "Yeah, okay!"

That's when Samus remembered her earlier predicament and talking to Old Bird gave her an idea.

"Hey hey, c'mere!" she asked pulling on the arm of Old Bird

"Hm?" he wondered as she pulled him away

"Please…?" she asked, hoping he would come

Old Bird didn't have much choice in the matter. The little girl was much stronger than she appeared as she basically dragged the Choujin away.

"Ah, ah…" he gasped, slightly shocked at the girl's forwardness

"Ah! Sa-Samus, wait!" her father called, trying to stop them, but they were already at the stairs leading to the base of the mining area

"W-Wait, Old Bird…!?" called out the other cloaked figure

"Ah, ah, I'm sorry Grey Voice." Old Bird called back, "Please continue with the negotiations." He managed to say before Samus pulled him completely out of sight

"That kid is trouble…" Rod Aran mumbled, scratching his head in confusion

Grey Voice simply stared off to where Old Bird once was, his hood down to reveal a face of concern.

_A few moments later (again)…_

"Eh, can you fly?" Samus half-asked, half-hoped

As she has approached the area where she had lost her backpack she began to have doubts about Old Bird's ability to lift off the ground.

"Ah, that's not it." Old Bird replied, "We lost use of our wings a long time ago." He replied solemnly, "Sorry to say."

Samus looked downtrodden at this sudden declaration, looking up at the creature that still held her beloved backpack.

"If you can't fly, neither can I…" she stated, "What can I do? How can I get that back…?" she wondered

Her pondering gave the aged Choujin an idea.

"Hm, if you let yourself get worked up you'll never get it back." He told her

"Eh?" she mumbled, bewildered by Old Bird's words

"What if he wants to be friends, just like you and me, Samus?" he asked her

This question lead to the beginning of a solution for Samus's little problem.

"Why don't you start off by giving him a name?" Old Bird asked her

"Eh? A name…?" she asked perplexed, but soon she went along with the idea, "Hmm…" she thought, trying hard to come up with a name

In seconds an idea hit her and without hesitation she blurted it out for all to hear.

"Ponchi!!"

As if this was its name from the very beginning the small rabbit-like creature perked up at Samus's proclamation, squeaking in surprise. Samus and Old Bird noticed this and turned ever so slightly to the creature. When Samus and Old Bird saw the look of surprise on its face they could help but giggle at the sight. They quickly turned away before it noticed them, the look of bemusement still plastered on their faces.

"Heh." Chuckled Old Bird, his plan working like a charm

"Eh, heh." Laughed Samus, "Eh, heh heh!"

Soon the forest was filled with their laughter over nothing but the exploits of a little girl and her newest friend.

_Some time later…_

From the looks of things the strange ship of the Choujinzoku was beginning to take off, the negotiations at an end.

"We trust the Choujinzoku." Replied Rod Aran, but the look on his face betray his feelings for what he was going to say next, "But that is another story…we just can't do it under these circumstances. Please understand?" he asked

"No no, we understand your position in entrusting that much from the federation." Replied Grey Voice

"We didn't mean to cause any troubles for you." Replied Old Bird, "Forgive our rudeness."

"So you're going?" asked Samus somberly, "But we're friends…" she groaned

"Y-Yeah, but we have a job to do." Replied Old Bird, somewhat shocked at Samus's reaction

"BIRD GRANDPA! COME BACK!" Samus yelled to the heavens as the Choujinzoku's ship left

_Leaving the orbit of K-2L…_

Meanwhile, back on Bird Grandpa's ship…

"Failed, as we had expected…" Grey Voice commented, "But we tried. Without the Afloraltite we just don't have the sufficient energy."

"Hmm." Muttered Old Bird, "We don't have time. We have to change the plan." He said before reply in the earnest of ways, "In any case, we must stop the Metroid Cultivation!"

Both Choujinzoku understood that much.

"If we just sit idly by, it will multiply." Old Bird pointed out

"If the Galactic Federation doesn't do something, they'll be paying for it before they know it!" replied Grey Voice

_Back on the colony…_

"Samus was such a little cutie when she was little!" squealed the pink wearing princess of the Mushroom Kingdom, "What coulda happened that made her the stone cold wall she is today?" she wondered

"Whatever it was it is probably something that truly affected the way the woman thinks." Replied Mewtwo, coming out from the bushes

"Why'd we have to hid in the bushes anyway?" asked Young Link, "I think something crawled into my pants." He said, scratching at his hind-quarters

"It is imperative that we are not seen or we could change how this dream plays out and never discover the secret behind it." Mewtwo replied, "Luckily Samus has returned to the main mining facility so we should be okay." He replied

"Well that's a relief." Replied Pikachu, this granted him strange looks from the others, "What?"

"Whoa…did Squeakers over here talk?" Bowser asked

"Whoa…I can talk human…awesome!" cheered Pikachu

"Actually that is inaccurate." Replied Mewtwo, "The truth of the matter is that you are communicating your thoughts and because we are currently linked mentally in a dream, all language is being deciphered into a means that we may all understand." Replied Mewtwo

"So I can talk?" asked Pikachu

"Sure, let's go with that." Muttered Mewtwo

"I can talk!" squealed Pikachu, "Oh, there is so much I want to tell you guys."

"But we can already understand you." Replied Peach, "Some of us rather well."

"Yeah, but not in human language."

"What's the difference?" asked Bowser

"It's human language!"

"Yes, this is a _riveting_ conversation, but we should really get back to Samus and discover how this dream will play out." Mewtwo replied

"So we have to hide again?" asked Young Link

"Yes." Replied Mewtwo

"But what if we get caught or someone sneaks up on us?" Young Link asked

"Inconceivable. With my divine psychic powers no body shall ever catch us, let alone sneak up on us." Mewtwo replied

"Hi weird floating cat." Replied a small voice

_Meooooooow!_

Mewtwo nearly jumped out of his skin, leaping into a tall tree and hanging onto it for dear life.

"He's a weird cat." Replied a little girl holding a large rabbit like creature

"You were saying "weird cat"?" quipped Bowser

"Quiet turtle."

"That's tortoise! Preferably Koopa King!"

"You're a king?" asked the girl in awe

"Yep, Bowser, the Terrible King of the Koopas." Bowser replied

"I'm Samus Aran, three years old." She said, "And this is Ponchi." She replied, referring to her fluffy friend

Ponchi tilted his head to the right and stared at the strange newcomers.

"Did you guys come with the Choujinzoku?" she asked, "'Cause if you did, Bird Grandpa already left."

"No…we uh…have a ship of our own." Replied Peach, trying to hide the fact that she was fibbing

"Oh…watcha doing here anyway?" Samus asked

"We're just…visiting. This place looks so nice that we just had to come."

"_Smooth_." Replied Bowser

"Hi, I'm Pikachu." Replied the yellow mouse, "I can talk."

"Really…cool?" replied Samus, unsure on how to respond

"This is troublesome." Replied Mewtwo, floating down from his perch

"Huh…?" asked Peach

Mewtwo guided her a few feet away from the others and as quietly as he was able he explained their predicament.

"She now knows that were are here." Replied Mewtwo, "The dream could change in any number of ways."

"But she doesn't know it's us. Maybe if we play along things will go smoothly." Replied Peach

"This is the human psyche I am speaking off. Nothing ever goes "smoothly" when dealing with the mind of a human."

"What's that suppose to mean?"

"Just as it implies." Replied Mewtwo

"**Oh…**" growled Peach

"I like your hat." Samus commented

"Thanks." Replied Young Link, "See, I told you this hat was cool." He said to Bowser

"Whatever long-ears."

"Hey, can you talk?" Pikachu asked Ponchi

Ponchi simply stared at Pikachu with a slightly confused look on its face.

"Guess not."

_Meanwhile, in orbit around K-2L…_

A strange presence moved among the shadow of the planetary colony. It was soon to be revealed that this presence was of a sinister looking ship with a mysterious aura about it. Smaller ships, mostly likely fighters, jettison themselves from the much larger space ship as it loomed in orbit around the planet. Deep within the ship's bridge sat a creature more imposing than even the ship itself. On its perch this creature stared off toward the small planet before him, having just watched the ship of the Choujinzoku fly out of sight.

"So you're going to transfer it to some far-off star, eh Old Bird?" The creature murmured

Before the creature could ponder its thoughts further it was cut off by the yell of one its subordinates.

"Sir Ridley!" The subordinate yelled, "We've picked up a large surge of energy in the form of Afloraltite. We think it's the Galactic Federation's Mining Corps."

"What!? What?" cried out Ridley, "Afloraltite?" he said dumbfounded

That's when the pieces began to fall into place and a wicked grin ran across Ridley's face.

"Ho ho, is that right?" he chuckled, beginning to understand, "That stupid old man again. What does he think he can do?" Ridley rasped

Ridley couldn't help but snicker at Old Bird's relentlessness. It made the dragon creature laugh at the hopelessness of the situation. But Ridley had other concerns at the moment than to chase some old fool.

"Pinpoint that energy source!" he ordered

_Back on the planet's surface…_

"Control, control, do you read!?" boomed a voice, "This is Beatrix III, advise launch procedure, control. Control?"

"Hey, why aren't you taking off?" yelled Rod Aran as he boarded the ship

"Ah, Boss!" one of the crew members gasped in surprise, "Atmospheric electromagnetic waves are toppling any ships that are trying to leave!" the crew member responded

"What!?" gasped Aran

"Infrared rays are at an abnormal level…outside electron beam irradiation is affecting the maps…"

"The maps?" Aran wondered, "The one here is most affected…" he pondered, "It's all coming from here…" he wondered, "Have they found the planet's energy source?"

That's when Rod Aran came to a startling revelation and true horror began to overtake the mining foreman.

"Sound the alarm!!" he yelled, "Send out an emergency signal!" he boomed, "Alert the Federation troops for dispatch!" he ordered

"W-what is it?" asked the crew member

"Use the terrain for shelter! It's basic tactics!!" he shouted as he made his way off the bridge of the ship

"Y-you mean…" the crew member murmur, a feeling an impending doom looming over him

"Get the entire crew to take refuge!" Aran yelled, doing his best to remain calm, "Forget the load, abandon ship!!"

That final yelled had drained the foreman and it was obvious that the man was at the end of his rope as he turned, face a flood of sweat. His next words were low, yet frightful, almost as if they were taboo or bringers of the end. And in a way, they were.

"They're coming." He said, almost unable to bear to say the next to words, "…Space Pirates."

_Returning to the forest…_

Not much had change since the Smashers encounter with the three year old Samus. Peach and Mewtwo were still talking amongst themselves. Bowser and Pikachu were few feet off; Pikachu talking away a mile a minute while Bowser looked like he was doing his best to keep from ringing the rodent's neck. Samus was busy playing with Ponchi, her light laughter bringing a smile to the lounging Young Link. He had never once heard Samus laugh like that and he thought the woman should do so more often. From his perch atop a tall tree the Hylian boy looked content, his mind not focused on anything in particular; his eyes half-closed.

"Now you see, as I was saying…" replied Mewtwo before his eyes went wide in shock and he looked over into the direction of the mining corps, "Oh no…"

"Ha ha, Ponchi, that tickles!" giggled Samus, before she noticed a bright light, "Hm?"

_**BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!**_

Samus's horrific scream was drowned out by the sheer ferocity that was unleashed! She held onto Ponchi for dear life as the force of the ferocious explosion threw her back. The other Smashers felt the inconceivable power released by the blast but it was Young Link who suffered the most from the concussion waves unleashed. Being high in a tree the young boy was catapulted through the air, unable to control himself and was launched miles away.

"Young Link!" Peach hollered, but it could barely be heard over the thunderous boom

"I'll retrieve Young Link!" yelled Mewtwo, "The rest of you watch over Samus and find the cause of this, but do not let yourselves be seen under _any_ circumstances. We cannot let ourselves be drawn into a battle!" he yelled before disappearing

_At the newly made battlefield…_

Alien ships dived in, launching an attack on the tiny colony. Some were shot down by the defenses on the colony, spiraling down in a fiery ball of destruction, but it was obvious that there were too many ships for the small colony to handle. Leading the attacking force was Commander Ridley, flying without a ship down to the planet's surface.

"Let's Go!" yelled Ridley, "Suppress the energy, then take what you can!!"

"Yes, Sir Ridley." His troops replied, coming in fast

"Just be careful with the afloraltite!" Ridley barked, "If we hit the energy source with a beam, it'll explode!"

Ridley was feeling great excitement from the anticipation of completely destroying the colony and all that resided in it. It acted as nourishment for the despicable creature.

"This place's too quiet without us!" chuckled Ridley, "CHOP IT TO BITS!" he screeched

The alien fleet flew in over the forest, a few explosions visible as the bulk of the fleet made its way to the main colony.

"Too long since blood and meat!" roared Ridley in laughter, "KILL AS MUCH AS YOU WANT, HAVE FUN!!" he cried, "We can collect the spoils slowly later!"

_Further ahead…_

The horrific screams of people being slaughtered had reached the ears of the Peach, Bowser and Pikachu. The group had long since lost track of Samus, but the sight before them stopped their search in its tracks.

"T-t-t-this…is horrible…" gasped Peach, watching in agony as Samus's home world was shredded to bits

Pikachu was unable to say anything about the horror playing out before him, his jaw simply dropped in utter disbelief.

"This isn't right…" replied Bowser, truly repulsed at what he was seeing

Sure, Bowser was mean and really didn't care who he hurt to get what he wanted, but not even the Terrible King of the Koopas would do something of this magnitude. If made his stomach turn and he would see no more of it.

"Come on!" he barked, startling Peach and Pikachu from their stupor, "We're getting in this."

"But Mewtwo…" replied Peach, not being able to finish

She kept telling herself that none of what she was seeing and hearing was real, but more than anything she wanted to stop this. But the princess was afraid of what Mewtwo told her, anything could happen if they interfered. The pink princess looked to Pikachu for an answer and saw it in the form of electricity dancing wildly on his cheeks and a look of anger on his face.

"Y-y-you want to help?" she asked, unbelieving

"Help…please, I'm just want to fight. Like I'd help blondie." He said, but deep down inside there was another reason, "So come on, let's fight!" he roared

Though his put up a good show Peach saw right through Bowser and smiled. She always knew that deep down the spiked koopa had a heart. With a nod she turned to the battle, rushing in with Pikachu and Bowser at her side.

_Back in the forest…_

"Thanks Mewtwo." Replied Young Link, carried in the arms by the flying cat as they made their way to the main colony

"Don't mention it." Replied Mewtwo

Suddenly Mewtwo picked up on something and almost immediately afterward he sighed in defeat.

"What's wrong?" Young Link asked

"It would seem that the others had gone against my instructions and have engaged in battle with the Space Pirates."

"But this is a dream, right?" asked Young Link, "We can't really get hurt, can we?"

"Physically no, however our brains will interrupt any pain we feel in this dream as actual pain and if we should 'die' in this dream our brains will stop responding and we will truly ceasing living." He replied

"Great…" muttered Young Link

"Well, since there is no avoiding what has already come to pass, we should prepare for battle." Replied Mewtwo

"You didn't need to tell me. I'm getting back at the pirate who launched that bomb." Replied Young Link

"First we must locate Samus. She is the key to discovering just what ails her so." Mewtwo replied

_Back at the fight…_

"Heh heh heh" chuckled Ridley, delighting in the carnage his troops were creating

Although, the terrible space lizard was jarred from his front row seat by a small voice.

"Papa, Mama, where…where are you?" the young girl called, her rabbit-like creature huddled in her arms in fear

Crouched in a sitting position Ridley turned to the girl and simply looked at her and her to him. They didn't hear the cries of dying colonist or explosions in the background. For the moment it was only the two creatures, both with looks of plain interest for the other on their faces. Suddenly one of Ridley's subordinates came into view with news.

"Sir Ridley, we've captured their bases." He informed, "We're boarding the transport now."

"Good." Ridley replied, acknowledging the subordinate before ordering to go his other duties

"You're R-Ridley?" the young Aran asked, "I-I'm Samus." She replied, "T-Three years old…"

Tears formed in the child's eyes and yet they were not tears of sorrow. She was simply crying for she hoped she had made a new friend in Ridley. And hopefully Ridley would see here as the same.

"Ridley, I'm not scared…it'll all be okay…even though we look different…we're friends, right…?" she asked, choking with each sentence she said as she sobbed

Ridley looked down at the girl, his normal expression of sadistic pleasure gone. The murderous pirate could help but stare down at the girl in pity. She was so…innocent. In his travels the dragon had never quite met of girl like this. And as he stared at her with eyes of sympathy, something welled up inside him, returning him to his original persona.

"Hmm. Can't have a cute girl around…" he muttered to himself, knowing what would happen if he spared the child, "We just can't!!" he barked at nobody in particular

"How come…?" Samus asked, quivering

Ridley couldn't afford to let his heart get the best of him now. It would be better off for the girl if she simply vanished…simply…

"TIME FOR YOU TO DISAPPEAR!!"

Samus screamed bloody murder as the ravenous Ridley attacked, her scream of pure fear alerting quite a lot of people to her presence.

"Was that Samus?" Peach asked, having just dealt with a Space Pirate with her trusty frying pan

"Yeah." Replied Pikachu

Bowser had heard it too. But so had someone else.

"Samus!?" cried Virginia, finally finding her daughter amidst the chaos

"Ah, mama…" Samus gasped, watching her mother run toward her

The other Smashers ran toward Samus as well, but they wouldn't make it in time as Ridley opened his mouth. Plasma flames danced in his gullet, aimed right for the young Samus Aran.

"We will take that afloraltite reserve!" roared Ridley, "EVERYTHING WILL _**BURN!**_" he bellowed, unleashing his breath attack

The ground buckled under the ferocious power unleashed by his breath attack, an attack that literally ignited the air around it, making it even more lethal than it already was. When it hit its target the beam exploded in a massive fireball that incinerated the victim, thought not without giving the poor receiver of the blow time to unleash one last blood-curdling scream.

"_KYAA!_"

"**MAMA!**"

The three Smashers arrived just in time to see the brutal end of the mother of Samus Aran. Eyes fell upon Ridley, the last of his flames dissipating into the wind.

"Y-y-you…" snarled Peach, pointing accusingly at Ridley, "_Monster!_" she barked

She didn't care if this was a dream. Ridley was going to _pay_ for what he had just done.

"Pi…" growled Pikachu, electricity swarming about him like a storm

Bowser didn't make an utterance, simply standing and glaring at the horrendous creature standing in front of him.

Ridley turned to these new creatures, a wicked grin sliding across his face. With a voice that dripped in venom he spoke to the angered Smashers

"So…it would seem you Smashers want to interfere with this dream." He said

* * *

This will end chapter two. Hope you like it and I hope you'll enjoy the next chapters coming out. 


	3. Dreamscape Part 3

This is the third chapter of the story, and the third chapter of the chronicles, enjoy.

* * *

Deep within the confines of the Beatrix III, Rod Aran could hear the massive explosions and the cries of his world being ripped apart. As he clutched his blaster to his chest he began to sweat profusely as he could hear many footsteps coming his way and they were not human. 

"Damn, they've entered the freighter." He cursed, breathing hard, his heart beating against his chest rapidly, "What do I do now?" he asked himself, raking his mind for ideas

He looked about the freighter, noticing the stockpiles of afloraltite in their cases.

"All they want is the afloraltite…" Rod thought, "But the federation troops won't get here in time…" he deduced, "What do I do?" he asked himself again

His mind was going a mile a minute and the only thing he could hear was the beating of his heart. Death was breathing down his neck and he knew it would only be a matter of time before the Space Pirates found him and destroyed him. But if he was going down he was making sure these bastards went right along with him.

"Hey, bitches! Over here!" he yelled, gaining the attention of two Space Pirates

One gasped in surprise while the other pointed out the obvious.

"You don't belong here." The pirate hissed

As the two pirates charged him Rod tried desperately to get his broken blaster to fire.

"Ha ha ha ha!" laughed one of the pirates, "Why even try fixing that blaster!?" he cackled, "What do you plan on doing with that toy?"

However his partner knew the dangers of setting off that blaster with all the afloraltite around.

"No, wait. You'll detonate the afloraltite!" the pirate screeched

His partner had yet to realize the dangers of what the human was planning on doing, closing in on his prey, cackling the entire time.

"I get it bastard." Rod chuckled, "You're not too bright, are you?" Rod asked

Rod pressed tightly on the trigger, forcing the gun to overheat due to its inability to fire, his hand shaking as he did.

"Idiot, what are you doing!" yelled one of the pirates

"You'll kill us all!" the other shrieked

"I'm sorry Virginia…" Rod murmur, knowing he was at Death's door, "It was all I could do."

Finally the gun could take no more and exploded, and in turn the explosion detonated the afloraltite, which in turn detonated the freighter.

"I LOVE YOU! SAMUS!!"

* * *

The battle between the Smashers and the Space Pirates was heating up as more and more of the Space Pirates did battle with them. But the Smashers were no pushovers and the Space Pirates had their work cut out for them. Pikachu cut swathes through the ranks of the pirates with his electrical attacks, blast after blast ripping through the despicable creatures every time he launched an attack. There was so much electricity flying around that the air was heavy with its presence. 

"Pi…ka…_CHU!_" smashing into a Space Pirate, sending hundreds of volts of electricity through the unlucky alien

His tail smashed into the head of another Space Pirate, dropping him where he stood while he fired a bolt of electricity at another one who tried to use the fall of his ally to ambush Pikachu. Sliding skillfully under a fourth Pikachu tripped a fifth before tackling the fourth and frying a sixth with his powers.

"**CHU!**"

The resonating sounds of a frying pan making forceful contact with an alien skull could be heard as Peach fended off waves and waves of Space Pirates. The fierce pirates tried with all their might, but Peach's quick and flowing movements kept them unbalance as she delivered painful smashes to their armored hides.

"Take this and this and this and this and this and this!" she yelled, dropping Space Pirates one after the other

A Space Pirate tackled her, but she threw him off, smashing the frying pan over his head before blocking another's claw strike. She spun, making the pirate lose balance and cracked the frying pan along the side of his head, then hopped over an advancing pirate, letting his stumble to the ground. Charged by yet another she pulled her club out and swung wildly, catching the pirate in the side of the face, causing him to spin away in a daze. More pirates joined the fight, but kept their distance from Peach's arsenal of "weapons".

"Come on, who wants some of the princess?" she goaded

Meanwhile, the Terrible King of the Koopas was doing battle with the Vicious Commander of the Space Pirates. The two monsters went claw-to-claw, the ground beneath them buckling under their combined weight as they smashed one another. Claw marks could be seen on the sides of ships that had landed earlier and burns marks along the ground due to both of their individual flame attacks. Just as Ridley was unloading another blast of plasma fire on Bowser he noticed a bright light in the sky. Averting his gaze slightly he also noticed that the bright light in the sky was an explosion of a ship, his ship.

"What!? Why's my ship burning!?" he said in shock, watching as his ship crashed

"It's coming this way!" Bowser shrieked, "You guys better move if ya don't wanna get toasted!" he roared

Pikachu and Peach looked up to see what Bowser meant and the moment they didn't their eyes went wide. Without wasting a second the Smashers ran for cover while Ridley slumped in disbelief over the destruction of his ship. When his ship crashed there was no explosion, for most of the ship was in flames at this time. The flames from the ship roared as the smoke reached for the sky, the commander of the ship crying out in disbelief over what was happening.

"Is this some kind of joke!" he screeched

However, seconds after proclaiming this his mood seemed to do a 180. He stood up calmly and stared at the Smashers as they came out of hiding. A grin appeared on his face as he looked at them.

"Heh." He chuckled, "It seems everything's going as I predicted. The dream is still in full swing, even with your interruption." He said

"Somethin' ain't right." Bowser thought, "How's a dream suppose to know that it's a dream?"

"Don't think this is over, we'll meet up again soon enough." Ridley said, before disappearing into a large dark circle that appeared beneath him

"What's going on?" Peach asked

Bowser shrugged, something was off with this dream.

"What happened to Samus?" they heard in their heads

Turning to the sky they saw Mewtwo and Young Link make their entrance. As they landed Mewtwo quickly came to the answer to his question.

"You lost her, didn't you?"

"Yes…and?" quipped Bowser

Mewtwo sighed. It would be pointless to argue. What was done was done, now they had to find her again.

"Hey kitty, somethin's not right with this dream." Replied Bowser, "The dream knows it dreaming."

"I know." Replied Mewtwo, "I sensed an anomaly as we arrived." He said, "We should be more careful from this point on. If it is what I think it may be then even my incredible powers may not be strong enough to handle what is coming next."

"So what do we do now?" Young Link asked

"Let the dream play out." Mewtwo replied, "That is until this anomaly makes its presence known again."

The Smashers took this in and understood. If they were going to figure out anything they'd need to wait. Looking toward the burning colony their hearts sunk a little over the senseless destruction.

* * *

_Later that evening…_

As the sun set on the colony two figures wandered through the hell-hole that was once Planetary Colony K-2L. The two figures were Old Bird and Grey voice. Having picked up on a distress signal from the colony earlier they came, but it seemed as if they had arrived too late.

"Now what…?" Old Bird asked in dismay

"Send a signal to Federation troops to come to K-2L, though I doubt they'll believe it." Replied Grey voice in a downtrodden tone

"Everything is gone…" muttered Old Bird, heartbroken

"Perhaps it was the pirates." Replied Grey voice, "Wiped out…not single soul left."

However, before all hope was lost a noise startled Old Bird from his depression.

"Papa." a small voice said, "Mama…" the voice said again

"Oh, oh." Gasped Old Bird, "I-It's…I can't believe it!" he gasped

"B-Bird Grandpa?" The small voice said, confused

The figure slowly approached and as she did, a feeling of joy mixed with bewilderment spewed forth, ushering in a loud call from the elder Choujin.

"SAMUS!!"

* * *

(Samus will be narrating again) 

_Zebes, second planet from the sun FS-176. After the Space Pirates attacked and left only me alive, the Choujinzoku brought me back here._

"Old Bird!! What were your intentions in bringing that earth girl back _**here?**_"

"And what do you have to say, Grey Voice?" asked Old Bird, "Is it that you could not leave the child to die, as is the way is should have been!?" he bellowed

"N-No, that's not it…" Grey Voice replied, solemnly "But…"

"_Humans lack the ability to adapt to Zebes._" Replied a robotic sounding voice, "_They are limited to either Crateria or Brinstar._" The voice replied

"Mother Brain." Old Bird murmured, staring up at the floating metallic ball as it floated down to their positions

"R-Right. We don't have the means to care for her here…" replied Grey Voice, his voice reflecting how startled he was with Mother Brain's abrupt entrance

"Grandpa…" called the small voice of Samus

"Oh." Old Bird gasped slightly, "Samus." He murmured

"This is no place for a little girl." Samus said, clutching Ponchi firmly, "Where are my friends…?" she asked

Before Old Bird had a chance to explain, Mother Brain appeared in front of Samus, its camera eye analyzing the startled girl intensely.

"It's okay, Samus. It won't hurt you." Old Bird assured her, "It's part of the planet's interface."

Even though Bird Grandpa had assured her of her safety, Samus felt uneasy with the penetrating glare that Mother Brain was giving her and turned away from the calculating machine.

"_This weak creature can not possibly live in Zebes' natural environment._" Mother Brain stated, "_Existence is possible, but only for a few days._"

"I know Mother…" replied Old Bird, stoically "But there is a way."

_Later…_

Attached to a strange device that connected with the very room a small sphere filled with an unknown liquid held a small figure. Standing a ways off were Old Bird and Grey Voice, watching intently as the liquid worked its wonders.

_The Choujinzoku boosted my body's ability to adapt to the planet. They transfected me with their DNA. A gift…_

* * *

_11 years later…_

"Attack Samus! What are you doing!?" yelled a voice, near an ancient temple of the Choujinzoku

Standing atop a small stone protrusion, Old Bird and Ponchi watched Samus train while Grey Voice barked his disappointment at a battle-armored ready Samus Aran who grunted in discomfort as she aimed the blaster of her Power Suit at her enemy.

"Hurry! Attack!" yelled Grey Voice, "Your enemy's closing in!" he barked, "Samus!"

The small clunking assistant robots closed in on Samus, slowly waddling their way toward the blaster-toting Aran.

"B-Back off!!" she yelled, backing up as she fired her cannon

The shot veered _**horribly **_off target, clipping the side of a nearby rock face.

"…"

Grey Voice said nothing at first because there were so many things he could have said about how much that shot officially sucked. Finally though he settled on reprimanding her for her bad aim.

"Entirely wrong again." He said, "Don't move while you aim!" he barked

A few minutes later an armor-less Samus Aran hit the dirt, thoroughly worn out from her workout.

"_Your powered suit is linked to your genetic information. If you fail, it fails._" Mother Brain stated, appearing out of nowhere

Samus hated with the Mother Brain did that and it made it all the worst that she was reprimanding her.

"Whadda you know!" growled Samus, shaking the egotistic machine for all it was worth

Eventually Mother Brain worked its way out of Samus' grip and flew away to safety. Without the know-it-all machine telling her how much she sucked Samus relieved her exhaustion with a drink of water, just as Old Bird, Grey Voice, and Ponchi arrived.

"Samus." Called Grey Voice, "What are you doing?" he asked, "Don't let your emotions take control of you." He told her

"Grey…" she muttered as Ponchi did his best to comfort her

"Fine, if you don't want to see the Federation prosper…" Grey Voice interrupted, "Even now, violence and calamity stride alongside them." He told her, "You of all people, should know that the most.

Flashbacks of Ridley and her mother's fate flashed in her mind as Grey Voice continued.

"Will it take a second time? A third?" he asked, "Understand…!?"

Samus stood and turned away, but Grey Voice continued on.

"You're a protector of the galaxy now. You're a member of the Choujinzoku. It's your duty to fulfill that destiny." He told her

"…"

Samus was silent for some time after that, many thoughts and memories surfacing after what Grey Voice had said.

"I understand…" she finally said in a stoic manner, before breaking out in a run

"Ah, Samus!" called Grey Voice, "Where are you going? You're not done training!" he yelled

But by then Samus had already used the assistance bots as stepping-stones to leap clean up a rock structure to take off. As the two Choujin watched Samus leave both understood one thing.

"Her body's abilities have definitely improved." Replied Old Brid

"Yeah." Grey Voice said, agreeing

_Later that day…_

Sitting atop a lone protrusion, a young girl stared out into the vastness that was her home. Her mind a drift, she sat, simply content with the peace that was around her, simply trying to come to terms with the tasks she was told were her destiny. As her mind drifted, her beloved Ponchi sensed another presence with them and turned curiously to see just what had joined them. Floating not but a few feet away, a strange butterfly-like creature was quenching its thirst with Samus' water bottle, happily sipping away at the bottle's contents.

"Eh? A butterfly?" she mumbled, as Ponchi quickly hid behind her, "Oh." She gasped as the butterfly-like creature took off, "Wow!"

Looking up her eyes went wide in surprise as she saw a whole group of the flying creatures, their bodies giving off a bright light as they flew gracefully through the air.

"Iono Faria…" replied Old Bird, coming up to Samus, "They absorb moisture ions, giving them the power to fly." He told her

"Grandpa." Murmured Samus, watching as Ponchi hopped off happily to Bird Grandpa, hopping on his head to play with the many feathers that adorned it

"It's called the 'Minus Ion Effect'." He replied, "As they calm down they start to fade."

However Samus couldn't care for the scientific explanation. All she cared for was that the "butterflies" were pretty.

"Again with your difficult theories!" she whined, "Isn't just saying 'pretty' enough??" she asked

A far-off look appeared on the young girl's face and Old Bird knew that even though Samus was to be the protector of the galaxy she was still just a girl.

"My reply troubled you…" he commented, "Hmm…you humans have such interest in profound thought." He said

"Ah! Grandpa!" she squealed, "You're starting like that again??"

Finally night had come and the stars and moon of Zebes came into view. It was at this time that Samus had noticed something odd.

"Hm? Where'd that butterfly go?" she wondered, until she noticed a bright light, "Oh! Here they are!"

Turning around she looked down a small valley and beheld a wondrous sight. Filled with the most beautiful of flowers the strange butterfly-like creatures gracefully floated about, their soft glows illuminating the field with such vibrant color that the valley itself seemed to glow with an array of soft colors.

"And with such amazing flowers!" she squealed, taking in the sight

With a quick turn Samus was gone, but not for long as she quickly returned with large bags in her hands.

"Here's some juice!" she cried out happily, "For my friends!"

Upon her declaration the strange creatures quickly congregated on the small Choujin offspring, surrounding her in a swarm of glowing balls.

"Ha ha, cool down!" she giggled, handing each a small water bottle, "There's lots!"

_Meanwhile, in one of the Choujinzoku's laboratories…_

"Give me a report on SR3888, Mother Brain." Old Bird ordered

Within the large room that many of the Choujinzoku now resided a large cylindrical tube stood, holding the true form of the robot eye of the Mother Brain. The floating ball traveled among the Choujin elders as they went over the latest reports.

"_Report: Metroid cultivation rate has reached a dangerous level…_" it replied, "_Unfortunate…_"

"Hmm…" murmured Old Bird, "Well in that case, are our children growing as anticipated?"

"…_Our Child'ren'…!?_" Mother Brain asked bewildered

"Samus will fight the Metroids as well." Old Bird replied as if it were everyday news

"…"

Mother Brain thought this over for a few moments. Though one couldn't tell, the center point of the Choujin world was indecisive over something. Eventually though she murmured out a small response.

"_I…see…_"

Back outside, Grey Voice had gone out for some air, to simply enjoy the night sky. As he did so he noticed Samus fidgeting with something on the ground. Upon closer inspection he saw that she seemed to be picking flowers.

"Samus." He called, gaining the blonde's attention

"Grey, look." She said, holding up a handful of flowers, "The flowers from the valley have bloomed here!" she squealed, "How pretty!"

The moment Grey got a good look at the flowers the color left in his face and his eyes went wide in fear.

"T-That's Bajar Glove!!" he cried out, "Where did you find this valley?" he asked quickly

_At the valley…_

The field of flowers went up in a brilliant display of smoke and flames, filling the night sky with orange, yellow, and red as the assistance robots unleashed flames upon the land.

""W-What are you doing!" Samus shrieked

"Samus!! Those flowers are from another planet!" Grey Voice yelled, "They're horribly poisonous at best!"

"Eh?" she muttered, watching as the flames consumed what she though to be the most beautiful things she had ever saw, "…"

Now that she knew the truth, she seemed lost in the twister of flames that was the burning of the flowers, seeing why their absolute destruction was a must.

"I see…" she murmured

"But where did they come from?" Grey Voice wondered aloud

"_Report: Valley search…Alkaloid response…corpse found._" Replied Mother Brain, finding traces of a dead body, "_Attackers from earlier days on Zebes. Space Pirates._"

"What!?" bellowed Grey Voice, "What was their reason for coming here…" he pondered

"Ah!" gasped Samus, "Space Pirates!? Here…!?"

"Someone came before you got here." Replied Grey Voice, realizing just what happened, "Just one…"

"…" Samus thought, before she too realized what this meant, "That one…"

Ridley.

"But it's strange…why would he come here just for that…?" Grey Voice wondered, "Just to seed those flowers…?"

"_Report: the Iono Faria are emitting levels of alkaloid. Conclusion: Danger._"

"What!? We need to clean it at once! Incinerate it all!!" bellowed Grey Voice, "The Bajar Glove and the Iono Faria!!" he yelled

After hearing that declaration, Samus couldn't believe her ears. How could Grey Voice kill off some defenseless creatures at the drop of a hat?

"Wait! You're just gonna kill them!" she screamed

"Of course." Replied Grey Voice, "Protecting our own ecosystem is naturally our top priority." He replied calmly

"AND YOU CAN JUST DO THAT!" she yelled, exhorting herself, "It's just that easy…!?"

"'Just do it'?" he asked perplexed by her sudden outburst, "What are you saying?" he told her, "I don't get. We do what we have to do." He told her, redirecting his attention toward the threat

"But why…!" she growled, but Grey Voice wasn't listening

"Aim at those butterflies." He ordered, although, the butterflies had other plans

Pulling from the safety of their wings the butterflies unleashed fully loaded laser rifles. They cocked their weapons and flew toward their attacks in a deadly swarm.

"What!?" Grey Voice cried out, "They have weapons? It can't be!"

"_Their hostility is rapidly increasing! Space pirates seem to have brought them weapons!_" Mother Brain quickly reported as the creatures began to fire

_ZAP!_

The blast was heading straight for Grey Voice, moving too fast for the Choujin to avoid.

"Damn…!" he barked as the blast closed in, ready to blow him out of existence

However, at the last second a ball of light emerged, grabbing hold of Grey Voice just before the blast could hit. Old Bird, who had just arrived, immediately knew what the spinning ball of light had to be.

"That's…" he gasped, "Samus!!" he said, watching Samus sail through the air, Grey Voice firmly in hand

As she landed she looked down at the hostile Iono Faria and with an voice of unwavering determination she called out the deadly butterflies.

"Fire at me instead!!"

With the focus of a true warrior Samus took aim and fired a beam of energy from her arm cannon, the shot flying straight and true toward its target. The shots made their way to the Iono Faria, popping their laser rifles out of their hands while simultaneously knocking the gun-wielding butterflies for a loop.

"If I…just aim at their weapons..." Samus thought, knocking each rifle to the ground with pinpoint accuracy

Old Bird watched in awe as Samus battled with the intuition and smarts of any of the Choujinzoku back when their race was at its prime. It didn't take long for the armored warrior to disarm all the Iona Faria of their weapons, leaving only one more thing to do. Charging her cannon, Samus aimed at the down rifles, her cannon humming with raw power.

_KA-BOOM!_

The blast released from her blaster annihilated the laser rifles, putting an end to the threat once and for all. With no weapons to fight with and with the poisonous flowers nothing more than ashes, Samus saw fit that the battle was over and was overjoyed that everyone came out of it with their lives.

"It's okay…" she told the flying balls of light, "No one will hurt you now…" she said, reaching up to pet one in reassurance

_FAAAAWWWHOOOOSSSSHHHH!!!!!!_

Intense waves of heat rushed past Samus, catching the Iono Faria in its devastating wake. The poor creatures didn't have a chance as they were roasted alive.

"_**KIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**_" they cried out as they were blown asunder

Samus watched in horror as the beautiful, dangerous, misguided creatures were burned into nothing. When there was nothing but ash, Samus turned abruptly to the source of the flames, seeing the flamethrowers of the assistance robots slowly cool off and Mother Brain floating a few feet above them.

"_Cleansing complete. Damage minimal._" Mother Brain replied, "_Thanks to Samus' cooperation._"

Rage took over the blonde fighter as she clenched her fist in anger, glaring daggers at the machine that ordered the senseless destruction of unarmed enemies. In a flash Samus was on top of Mother Brain, bringing her fist down with massive power to…smash the assistance robot that Mother Brain just happened to be floating near. The machine was obliterated on impact and fell to the ground in a pile of scrap metal. Then without a word the angered girl began to stalk off.

"Samus!" she heard Old Bird call, but Samus would not have it and continued to walk away, trying to hold back tears from within her helmet

Old Bird could only look on as the troubled youth took her leave.

* * *

Samus just had to get away, away from the destruction, away from Old Bird, away from Mother Brain. 

"_Mother Brain._" She growled, clenching her fist once more

Had she'd stayed a second longer there was no telling what she may have done to the floating computer network. Samus just needed a place to cool off and collect herself. However, someone wasn't about to give her that opportunity.

"So this is the great protector of the galaxy?" someone question condescendingly, "I am not impressed." The voice said

Samus knew that voice, but it couldn't be him, no way it could be _him_. But as she turned to face her persecutor she as greeted with a face she only saw in her nightmares.

"Ridley!" she barked

"I'm glad you remember me. I had almost thought you may have forgotten." He cackled

Before he had a chance to continue a laser blast rocketed toward him, but the large creature simply opened his wings and took flight, avoiding the blast.

"Quick to the trigger are we?" he laughed, "My my, what rage you have."

Samus fired again, the blast once again missing the surprisingly agile creature.

"Well I must admit that all this rage isn't completely of your doing. I mean, I guess losing one's parents to the likes of me would give one unbelievable hate." He replied, matter-of-factly

That tore it; Samus began firing wildly at the despicable creature. But her rage made her throw off her shots, making her precise shots from earlier nothing more than a fading memory.

"Is this what the galaxy is waiting for!?" Ridley cackled wildly, "A protector of this caliber!? The galaxy is better off as it is!" he cackled maniacally before firing off a blast of plasma fire

Samus couldn't completely avoid the blow, but she managed to jump away and avoid the majority of the damage. However the force of the blow sent her into a boulder, cracking it on impact.

"Heh heh heh heh." He laughed, landing and watching as Samus struggled to stand, "Even without being hit with the full blast you can barely move. Some protector." He muttered, "I will do the galaxy a favor and blow you out of existence." He said, powering up once again

However, before he had a chance to fire a barrage of powerful attacks interrupted him.

"Shadow Ball!"

"CHU!"

A ball of shadow energy and a blast of electrical power flew toward Ridley, causing the dreaded creature to leap to safety. Just as he landed another attack came hurtling toward him.

"Koopa Claw!"

Ridley barely managed to avoid the claw swipe as it crushed a nearby boulder into dust.

"Well well." Replied Ridley, "You've come sooner than I thought." He said

"Well we didn't get a chance ta finish our fight the first time around and I was feeling a little antsy." Bowser replied, cracking his knuckles

"I tried to keep these fools in line, but they do not want to listen to my superior intellect so I am forced to fight." Replied Mewtwo, "So be it."

"Piiiiiiii..." growled Pikachu menacingly, electricity bouncing wildly from his cheeks

"We won't let you hurt Samus!" barked Peach, frying pan in hand, "If you want her you'll have ta go through us!"

Young Link nodded in agreement, brandishing his sword and shield and taking position next to Peach who was standing in front of Samus.

"So be it." Ridley replied, his wings shooting out, "I'll drag you all into the darkness!" he roared before charging them

* * *

And that's the third chapter of this story. Hope you like it so far and see the explosive conclusion next chapter. 


	4. Dreamscape Part 4

This is the last chapter of his section of chronicles. Hope you've enjoyed and please, keep reading.

* * *

From cliff-face to cliff-face the boy leapt, sword at his hip, shield at his side. Coming up on his left a sinister creature approached, plasma flames licking at his lips, a devilish grin plastered on his face. Opening his mouth the dark creature turned to the boy and the plasma fire increased with intensity until it was ready, which he then fired on the leaping boy. The boy reached into his tunic and pulled out his GrappleShot (which works the same way as his old Hookshot, except it isn't a chain, but a long rope with a grappling hook on the end) and pointed toward an adjacent cliff-face. Just as the incinerating flames could reach the boy the GrappleShot hooked onto the cliff-face and immediately pulled the boy toward it, effectively helping him to dodge the attack. The moment he reached it he turned toward the despicable creature and aimed a Fire Arrow at it, letting it fly through the air once he found his target. 

_Swish!_

The arrow found its mark, impeding itself into the creature's thigh. The creature howled in pain as it proceeded to rip the foreign object out of its leg, but its lag gave all the time needed for another powerful creature to unleash its own fury.

"Koopa Guillotine!" yelled Bowser, coming down with both his claws, slicing the very air with the power he unleashed

However, Ridley managed to avoid the attack by taking flight, quickly making distance between himself and the spiked koopa.

"Stop flying!" bellowed Bowser, growing irate with the creature's wings

"Fry!" roared Ridley, unleashing his flames

Bowser unleashed his as well and the two attacks connected, but it didn't take long for Ridley's more powerful flames to push Bowser's attack back. Before the blast could hit the Koopa King jumped away, letting the blast annihilate the rock he was standing on.

"Heh…" chuckled Ridley, before sensing something close in

The mighty Space Pirate managed to dodge the oncoming attack, but not enough to avoid being burned by black flames. Mewtwo flew pass him, paws glowing wildly with energy.

"Do not believe you have power over me." Mewtwo replied, glaring at the creature

"I have more power than you can imagine." Replied Ridley, baring his claws

"_CHU!_"

The bolt sailed pass Ridley, the creature just avoiding it. He dared not to look down at the mouse that fired the attack, out of concern for what Mewtwo would do the moment he looked away. But Ridley could not just simply fly there and let the electric rodent fire more bolts of electricity at him, not the mention letting the other Smashers attack him as well.

"Take this!" yelled Peach, hurling her frying pan at the flying monster

Ridley used his wing to deflect the blow, letting the frying pan spin through the air before returning to Peach like a boomerang. The princess clenched the weapon tightly as she floated up toward the Space Pirate.

"So they have me surrounded, do they?" Ridley muttered, "They have no clue what I am capable of." He said, smiling wickedly

_Snap_

With a snap of his fingers the Smashers felt as if all their power had been drained away in an instant. Peach fell to the ground, smashing into the dirt, hard, while the rest of the Smashers toppled over, not even able to support their own weight. The only Smasher that seemed unaffected was Mewtwo, still floating in the air, still with paws glowing with Shadow energy, still glaring at Ridley.

"The hell…" growled Bowser, trying to lift himself up, but failing, "Feel so tired all of a sudden." He said

"Pi…" mumbled Pikachu, barely able to generate enough electricity to power a flashlight

"Mewtwo, what's going on?" Peach asked, her frying pan falling from her grip

"I thought as much." Replied Mewtwo, "You are not originally part of this dream, are you?" he asked

Ridley's smile grew further.

"What are you saying; I am the one who destroyed Samus' life." Replied Ridley, "I am her greatest fear."

"You are not. Ridley is, but you are not Ridley." Mewtwo replied, "Do not lie to the likes of me."

"Heh heh." Chuckled Ridley, "Smart creature." Ridley replied, "And it would seem I cannot weaken you."

"My mind is far above theirs." Mewtwo told him, "Simple tricks will not work on me."

"Yes, but even you are vulnerable here." Ridley explained, "Since this isn't _your_ mind we are in." he told him

Mewtwo's eyes grew wide, figuring out what Ridley was planning, but before he could stop the pirate, Ridley unleashed flames on the psychic cat, forcing Mewtwo to block the flames with his shield. With this momentary distraction, Ridley was free to ambush his real target, Samus.

Speaking of the blonde, Samus was still a little shaken from Ridley's earlier attack, but she had managed to stand on her own two feet.

_Raaaaaaaaah!_

Samus turned to the screech to see Ridley barreling down one her, claws and teeth bared. She aimed her cannon at the approaching beast and fired, the blast screaming toward the clawing creature. The blast clipped Ridley's shoulder, but the massive creature refused to slow, eventually crashing into her with a full-frontal tackle.

"Nice shot." Ridley said, holding Samus by the shoulders as he lifted her through the air, "Too bad it had no effect." He mocked, "But I suppose this is the best I can expect from such a weak, little girl."

Samus fought hard against the overgrown creature, but his strength was barbaric and his words, venom.

"Let me go!" she growled, trying to aim her blaster even with Ridley holding tight

But the maniacal space dragon wouldn't give her the chance, smashing into a boulder during his flight. Though the impact slowed him down a bit, smashing into the boulder had done a number on Samus as well.

"That thing is insane." Mewtwo thought, trying to catch up, "If I don't do something soon…"

"Come on, _protector_, fight back." He mocked, "Or is it you are simply too weak for that?" he asked, "The Choujinzoku made an error in choosing you. You are just some weak human girl who got lucky enough that her mother died instead of you." He said

Within her helmet, Samus' eyes went wide in shock and anger as Ridley proceeded to degrade her.

"I suppose it was my error as well, not making sure that you were completely annihilated that day." He said, "But I will rectify that mistake by destroying you now!" he roared, flinging her from his grip

Mewtwo tried to catch her, picking up speed, but Ridley would have none of that, swatting the flying cat away before he could get close.

"_Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_" yelled Samus as she sailed through air

During her unwarranted flight the blonde girl went **through** a rock protrusion, bounced off another, and hit the ground; skidding for some time before finally coming to rest in a small valley.

"Uhhhhhhh…" she groaned, trying, but failing at picking herself up, "I…can't…" she murmured, as she lay, "He's too strong." She said, "I can't win."

The moment those words left her lips the wicked grin on Ridley's face turned insane. Mewtwo felt a drastic change in the way the dream was working and almost immediately after that he felt his strength drain from him.

"No…this can not be…" he groaned, falling from the sky

"Heh heh heh." Cackled Ridley, making his flight over to Samus, "This is the endgame." He said, landing nearby, "Time to drag you into the darkness." He said, a strange pool dark liquid forming underneath Samus

Small hands began to rise from the inky darkness and take hold of the stunned blonde.

"What!? Get off!" she barked, struggling against the hand

"Pathetic hunter." Ridley mocked, "To think you could stop the likes of me with skills like those. You are nothing and now I will pull you into nothingness." He said

The darkness began to surround her, pulling her deep into its unfeeling void. Samus reached out toward the moon light, the only light to still beam down on her, but even that began to fade as she lost more and more of herself to the darkness.

"Someone…help…" she managed to squeak before her head was engulfed by the darkness, leaving only her arm to reach out for any assistance, any ally

"Well…that is one Smasher I won't have to contend with." Chuckled Ridley

But before Samus could be fully absorbed into the darkness, something extraordinary happened. Shooting out from seemingly nowhere a sticky red appendage wrapped around one of Ridley's legs. By the time he noticed he was already being pulled rapidly against his will and before he could come to his senses he was pulled into the gullet of a very angry omnivore. The next thing he knew he was compacted into a small space and launched some distance away.

Samus could feel herself slipping, her hand barely reaching out of the inky darkness for anything to hold onto, any hope. Luckily for the blonde fighter, hope came. Taking hold of her hand, a green paw pulled Samus Aran from the darkness. As she was taken away the dark hands of the darkness screeched in protest over the loss of their prey, though they were shut up when an exploding egg was launched into the pool.

"Who…what are you?" Samus asked, looking up at the much taller creature that saved her

"Yoshi!" replied the dino-dragon omnivore of Yoshi's Island, "Yoshi's here to help." He said

"Why?" Samus asked, "Why help someone you don't know?"

"Samus Yoshi's friend." He replied, "Yoshi won't let nothin' bad happen to friend." He replied

Some people would have been touched by such sentiments, but Samus wasn't some people. She pushed the large creature away and aimed toward the encased Ridley.

"Yoshi know Samus will win." Yoshi said to her as she fired

"Raaaah!" roared Ridley, breaking free of his _**egg**_-casement, "Who dares to egg me!?" he roared

(I _so_ should be shot for that line)

Ridley roared with a seething feeling of hate erupting from his throat. But as he rose he took a blast to the chest, knocking him to a knee as he took the hit.

"Nice shot." Yoshi commented, but Samus ignored him

"Eh…stupid dinosaur…" Ridley growled, once again coming to his feet, "No matter, soon he will be like the others."

The vile monster glared at Yoshi, fully expecting the green dino to fall over from a complete loss of energy, but instead, the dino-dragon continued to stand as if nothing was happening, a rather content look on his large face.

"What…what is going on?" muttered Ridley, "He should have no energy! Why is he still standing!?"

While Ridley growled over this strange occurrence, Mewtwo watched on, he himself wondering that, among other things.

"How did Yoshi enter Samus' dream? He was asleep in front of Samus' door and I didn't project his mind into hers. How is it that he is linked?"

Mewtwo raked his powerful mind for an answer, but could find not plausible reason that Yoshi could be here, not to mention not be affected by whatever strange ability Ridley seemed to posses. There was just no way to explain it, no logical reasoning.

"No…logical…reasoning…" Mewtwo thought slowly, "By jove, that's the answer!" he thought

Meanwhile, the other Smashers had managed to get to their feet, but that was all they were able to manage. None had the strength to move, let alone fight.

"When I get my hands on that Ridley…!" growled Bowser, trying to support himself

"Easier said…than done…" replied Young Link, "Feel so weak…"

"No duh elf, we all feel weak…" quipped Bowser, "Don't know what he did, but he'll pay."

"Actually…I have figured it out." Replied Mewtwo, appearing in front of the downed Smashers

"Well where were you freaky kitty, huh?" asked Bowser, "Get preoccupied with a ball of yarn of something?"

"I'll ignore your _attempt_, and I do mean that in every way, at sarcasm and simple explain to you why you are so weak." He replied

"Well just don't float there, get on with it!"

"Ahem." Mewtwo mumbled, clearing his throat

Before he spoke, the psychic cat sat in a meditative state, floating a foot in the air.

"As I said before, I can project my thoughts and others thoughts into another because of me **vast** psychic powers."

Peach, Bowser, Pikachu, and Young Link all rolled their eyes at the "vast" comment but choose not to say anything.

"However, I failed to mention that there are many ways to project one's mind into another's."

"And?" they all asked

"The way I have projected our minds is not without fault. True, it is quite stable but it does not allow for much, imagination, for the lack of a better word."

"Huh?"

"See it like this. My projection involves taking your brainwaves and "putting" them into another's. This is so that I can monitor them within the dream. However this limits you only to your abilities in reality, thus giving Ridley the power to drain since for some unknown reason he is psychically feeding off of this dreams power. However, the way Yoshi is using it is more of a bridge, and a bridge goes both ways."

"Wait a sec, Yoshi's here?" as Peach, "How?"

"I was just getting to that." Replied Mewtwo, "The species of Yoshi may be a simple breed, but they are rather intelligent creatures so it would not take much for Yoshi to invade Samus' dream through use of my powers. Since Yoshi's connection is a bridge between Samus' mind and his own, using my mind as a middle point he has no true limit on what he can imagine and without a limit, Ridley cannot stem his power for he can't measure it." He replied

"I sorta get it…" replied Pikachu, "But can we do that too?" he asked

"Yes, but it would put you in danger of instability." Mewtwo replied, "If Samus feels too strongly about a particular emotion there is a chance you will be immediately ejected from her mind."

"Well its better than just standing around like a bunch of idiots." Replied Bowser, "Bridge us kitty."

"Don't call me kitty." Mewtwo said, closing his eyes, "I will have to leave the dream in order for you all to be bridged, so Samus' fate is up to you." He replied, "Don't screw up."

"Oh ho ho, ya don't have ta worry about that." Growled Bowser, "A certain Space Pirate called Ridley is about ta be introduced ta my fist!"

With a nod of approval, Mewtwo disappeared. Moments later the Smashers could feel their energy coming back, that and more.

"I feel great!" Bowser roared happily, "Better than great!"

"Pika!" squealed Pikachu, "I'm ready to fight!"

"Yes!" cried Young Link

"Come on boys, we have a Ridley to _**break**_." Peach commented

_Back with Samus and Yoshi…_

Samus was thrown back by the incredible power unleashed by Ridley's plasma breath, but luckily this time she was able to catch herself, grinding to a halt on the ground.

"Need help?" Yoshi asked

"No." replied Samus, charging her cannon

Yoshi simply shrugged and let Samus have at Ridley. Samus ran full speed at the large creature, dodging plasma blasts and claw swipes before unleashing a blast on the large creature.

BOOM!

"I'll rend you to pieces!" he barked, slashing at Samus

Samus put her arm cannon up to block the blow, throwing Ridley off; kicks came flying from Samus as Ridley slashed madly at her. As they did battle Yoshi noticed the other Smashers coming and in the blink of an eye ran over to them.

"Oh, I'm gonna have fun." Bowser said, feeling faster than he ever had before, "**LOTS** of fun."

"Wait!" they heard someone yell

This someone happened to be Yoshi who stood between them and the battle between Samus and Ridley.

"Move dino!" barked Bowser, "I have a bone ta pick with Ridley."

Yoshi shook his head no.

"This is Samus battle." He said, "Don't interrupt."

"Look, this'll be _your_ funeral if ya don't move."

"No."

"Why you…" growled Bowser, rearing his fist back

"Bowser wait." Peach said, "Maybe we should let Samus fight this one." Peach replied, "Besides, Ridley is her big baddie. She should be the one who gets to fight him." She said

"But I wanna fight…" whined Bowser

"Don't worry, if Ridley pulls out any tricks we'll jump in, but for now, let's watch."

Ridley slashed down, but Samus avoided, firing her cannon. The blast clipped his shoulder and he faltered, giving Samus the opportunity to land a powerful kick to his side. Ridley cringed, and brought his knee up but Samus blocked with her own. Nonetheless, the blow was enough to push Samus away and Ridley attacked with his plasma breath. Samus curled into Power Ball and rolled away and charged Ridley in that form. Her ball form began to glow as she rolled and Ridley tried to swipe at it, but Samus bounced and crashed into Ridley's chest with full force, once again toppling the creature.

"Eat this!" yelled Samus, standing atop Ridley and unloading her cannon onto Ridley

Blast after blast hit Ridley, Samus firing non-stop on his heavy form. A wave of smoke and light erupted from the madcap firing, burning at his armor without restraint.

"Enough!" he roared, rising up abruptly

Samus was thrown off but she kept her footing and continued to point her arm cannon at Ridley. It could be seen that Ridley had taken some damage, though his armored hide had taken the brunt of Samus' fierce attack. However it was less the attack and more of the fact that Samus was somehow even able to damage him.

"Damn that Yoshi…he did something. I've lost my control over her." Ridley muttered, "Well I guess I have no choice…"

Ridley sighed and put his hands up, the flames in his mouth dying down, his body looking ragged and torn.

"Huh?" questioned Samus

"I give up." Ridley said, "I can barely handle you and if the others should join in I'd surely be destroyed." He said, "Even I know when I'm beat."

Samus wasn't particularly sure about his, but Ridley looked defeated. But she wasn't going to take any chances and kept her cannon on him as she walked over to him. When she got close she watched him carefully for any tricks and found none.

"Put you arms behind your back." She ordered

"Fine, fine." He replied, doing as she said

"I've waited a long time to bring you to justice." She replied, "Now you'll pay for your crimes."

"Yes, my crimes." He said, hiding a smirk from Samus

The bounty hunter never noticed the spear-like tail slither up behind her, pulling back. By the time Samus sensed it the tail was already flying toward her, threatening to impale her on the spot. But the hunter had a guardian dinosaur. Just before the tail could run her through something grabbed it. Both Samus and Ridley looked in surprise as Yoshi stood behind Samus, holding Ridley's tail in place without much effort.

"Cheater." Yoshi said

Samus looked at Yoshi, feeling something she hadn't felt in a while.

"I don't need your help." She told Yoshi

"Yoshi know, but Yoshi wants to help anyway." He replied, "Samus is Yoshi friend and friends help friends." He said

"But why me?" she asked, "Why be my friend? I'm different than you, in so many ways."

"So?" Replied Yoshi, "Yoshi is Yoshi and Samus is Samus, but that doesn't stop us from being friends." He said, "Samus and Yoshi just a different kind of friends."

That's when Samus remembered the words of Bird Grandpa the first time she met him, words she had forgotten, but this creature had made her remember.

_My appearance may differ, but inside…peace dwells within both your heart and mine just the same_

"Yeah…we're a different kind." Samus replied, relaxed

"Yoshi help now?" he asked, still holding back Ridley's tail even after the dragon creature had stood to give himself more support

"Knock yourself out." She replied, "Better yet, knock _him_ out."

Yoshi nodded as Samus walked away, a wicked grin appearing on his face.

"You!" growled Ridley, charging Yoshi

Yoshi tugged on Ridley's tail, throwing him off balance before the dino-dragon began to spin Ridley round and round. Finally, after revolving him an incalculable amount of times, Yoshi tossed the creature into the air to spin wildly out of control.

"Eat this!" yelled Yoshi, throwing egg upon egg at the spiraling space dragon

The amount of eggs in the air blanketed the sky, falling like arrows from the bow onto the distorted creature.

"No!" Howled Ridley, his eyes going wide as the attack fell upon him

Instead of going off separately and creating a dangerous chain blast, the eggs exploded as one entity, creating an overwhelming concussion wave.

_**KA-BOOM!**_

Ridley had no time to screech in pain for the blast drowned out all forms of sound in the immediate area. Only a light shadow of Ridley's form could be see within the explosion, showing that even though it was obvious he was hurt, he was a long way from dead. Yoshi watched as Ridley fell to the ground, but surprisingly caught himself on his arm instead of making a crater on impact. Pushing to his feet Ridley glared at Yoshi and vowed an eternal oath of death upon him. But he never got a chance to fulfill that oath, for an electric rodent made his presence known.

"Chu!"

A blast of thunder cackled forward, smashing into Ridley and unleashing enough volts on the monstrosity to light a city for weeks.

"Raaaaaaaaaaaaaaah" Ridley howled in pain, the ground beneath him giving way under the horrendous power coursing through him

After the power had died down, the large beast fell to his knees, breathing wildly, his body still with traces of the fretful attack. Meanwhile Pikachu hopped down from a boulder, feeling rather good about himself and his attack.

"Wow…I could never unleash that much before." He thought

"Remember what Mewtwo said." Peach replied, "We're only limited by our imaginations."

"So we can do anything?" Young Link asked hopefully

"Yeah. I suppose." She replied, "Anything we can think of anyway."

"That's all I need ta know." He replied

Shooting off like a bullet, Young Link ran toward the wavering Ridley, his left hand glowing brightly as he ran. A smile creased his lips and he felt an unbridled urge to laugh. A feeling of invincibility rose in his heart as he closed in on Ridley, even when the aforementioned pirate fired on him; Young Link aptly dodged the attack and went into his own.

"Haaaa!"

A furious series of slashes came from Young Link, cutting through Ridley's armor like scissors through paper. Ridley tried to back away but was held in place by a glowing triangle, brought forth by the boy's courage and determination.

_Yah! Hah! Seyah! Hyah! Cha!_

For every yell came a slash, coating Ridley in pain and light. Young Link knew that in reality he could never pull off an attack like this, only his older form could. But here, there was nothing he couldn't do and he was going to make full use of it. Slashes turned into strikes, piercing Ridley instead of cutting him, but that didn't make them any less damaging as the flurry of attacks were nothing but a blur to any onlooker.

_**SEYAH!**_

His final cry unleashed a devastating slash that knocked Ridley from his triangular prison and sent him skidding back, pieces of his near-impregnable armor chipping off. But this was not the end of the demon's pain.

"Koopa Chaos!"

Bowser's slashed tore the very air around him and resulted in a storm of kinetic energy to barrel down on Ridley. Ridley tried to block with his plasma fire, but found it next to useless against the vicious attack, only proving to temper the initial blast, though still caught up in the back draft and thrown into a stone pillar, which promptly fell on him.

"I'm not done yet!" he bellowed, clawing his way out of the rubble

"Actually, you are." Replied Peach, standing beside him

Shocked, Ridley wondered just where she had come from. She was with the others a moment ago. Reaching into her dress Peach pulled out a large weapon, a black-headed hammer and laid it lazily along her shoulder, looking down at Ridley with a look of disgust.

"I don't know what you're doing here, but think its time you took you leave." She said, "You've been really rude."

"You…" growled Ridley, trying to stand

"Oh no you don't." she said, stepping on Ridley's chest and keeping the large creature in place, "Hey Samus." Peach called, granting acknowledgement from the girl who had sat back and watched the devastation unleashed on Ridley, "Do you want to finish him off?" Peach asked, "It's your dream after all."

What was this weird woman talking about? A dream?

Ridley swiped at Peach menacingly but she barely paid him mind, knocking away his slashes with simple hand gestures.

Samus looked toward Yoshi and the green dino smiled.

"That would explain a lot." Thought Samus

But if this really was a dream, then what was she like in reality? What was her relationship to these strange fighters in actuality? How did they get here? Why did they come?

So many questions plagued the young hunter's mind as she wondered about her future, or as these one's put it, her reality. Yoshi continued to smile at the young girl. For some reason that was unknown to Samus he saw pass her out shell and saw something deeper about her. Samus didn't know why he saw this or why he felt so strongly for her, but she did know one thing. He wasn't going to be leaving anytime soon and whether or not this would be a good or bad thing was still in the future but Samus would strive for that future, no matter the consequence.

"Time for you to go." She said, charging her cannon

Peach smiled and pulled back on her hammer. Ridley roared in protest but it fell on deaf ears as she swung full force at the Space Pirate, smashing clean into the air.

Samus aimed her cannon, collecting energy far beyond its normal capacities. This was because for this very moment she felt invincible and feeling that way tended to usually give positive results.

"Get…" she said, watching a Ridley flew through the sky, "…out my…" she said, locking onto his monstrous form, "_head!_" she yelled, firing

_**FAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWOOOOOOOOSSSSSSHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!**_

The kickback from her attack pushed her back as the ball of energy released, fired. In a vain attempt to hinder his own demise Ridley tried to right himself in the air and fly away, but only managed to turn toward an intense light. By the time he realized just what was coming it was too late for him to dodge, the blast engulfing him in his entirety.

"_**NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!**_" he roared in utter disdain, the blast blowing off his armor to reveal something…else

Behind the apparent façade, it seemed as if a woman was the true malcontent behind the disorder of Samus' dreams. Her shrilled scream filling the night sky as she was forcefully ejected from Samus' psyche. The ball of power reached the heavens before exploding in brilliant display of sound and light, light which reached across the stretches of the planet, engulfing all around in its magnificent glow. The Smashers felt themselves pulled by an invisible force as the light intensified and their subconscious minds were thrown into a blur of light and sounds as they too left the home of the bounty hunter's inner workings. Samus watched as these strange visitors left, a mixed feeling of regret and relief squirming about her heart. We these, people she could trust? She didn't know the answer to that question, but she was willing to find out.

* * *

_Earlier that morning…_

The sun was beginning to rise on Zebes, just as Old Bird found Samus sitting atop a large plateau, one that lead into one of the Choujinzoku's many temples. Samus seemed to be in deep thought, her mind swimming with questions from earlier and thoughts of what her future would bring. As she sat with her head in her knees, Old Bird called out to the girl, breaking her from her trance.

"Samus." He said, walking up slowly to her, "It happened so fast I didn't even notice it, but you have grown up." He told her

"Grandpa?"

"We've always been the protectors of the galaxy." He said, "We Choujinzoku have relied on the intellect and judgment of the Mother Brain, thusly declining as a species." He explained, "Samus, you've been here since childhood, and we still don't know you exact significance." He said, regarding her fully, "It's time for you to leave this nest."

"Wh-…" she stuttered, "What? But don't I still need training…!?" she inquired hastily

"You've always had the 'power'!" he exclaimed, promptly "We've just forged your 'heart'." He replied, "And now it's time for you to build on it."

A far-off look came upon the face of Old Bird as he continued.

"Samus. You have different roads ahead of you now. It's up to you to choose the right one." He replied, "Be the true protector of the galaxy."

"I am…" she started as the sun shown through the clouds, blanketing her in their ever seeing glow, "The true protector of the galaxy…!"

* * *

Dishes clattered in the sink as the Smashers finished breakfast that morning. They ate in relative silence, though it was not an uncomfortable silence as one might expect, instead a peaceful silence as they minds drifted around over the happenings of the night. 

"Morning." They heard from the doorway and their heads instantly swiveled to that direction

Making her entrance was none other than Samus Aran, having recently awoken from her slumber. Her hair was a mess, a bewildering spider web of loose ends. It would seem a half-ass attempt was made at dressing herself this morning, most likely just something she through on to get some breakfast. The bounty hunter didn't look very tired, more so bored as she sauntered over to the cabinets and rummaged around for breakfast like food products, fighting off a piece of sentient mold for dominance over a box of cereal. Luckily it was a new box so the mold hadn't made its claim on the cereal within. The Smashers present watched her the entire time as she made herself breakfast, the fridge being the next stop on her journey to satisfy her hunger. The fridge door opened, the milk came out, the fridge door closed. There was no climatic battle for dominance here, since the fridge was one of the cleanest things in the mansion, being that the Smashers loved to eat. With that deed accomplished there was only one more thing left to do, and that was find utensils. A bowl was pulled from the bottom cupboard, red in color and just large enough to fulfill the requirements for cereal containment. A spoon made its way to her hand as she reached into the spoon drawer, the drawer lacking a few of the aforementioned utensil. What happened to the other spoons would probably never be figured out, but the Smashers could always get new ones so it was no real concern to them. As Samus made her way to the table her hand reached out toward the green dino-dragon, who was standing nearby. Since Yoshi was taller than she was she was forced to reach up toward the creature, in a gesture that looked as if she might do something painful to him. The others held their breaths as her hand approached, settling on the large head of the dino.

"Hey Yoshi, how you doing?" she asked, her voice cool and even

"Yoshi yosh!" replied Yoshi happily, a smile adorning his face

Samus smiled ever so slightly before sitting down to breakfast. Peach looked perplexed. Samus was never an easy one to figure out and this morning was no different, but Peach still couldn't shake the feeling that something was different with the cannon-toting blonde.

"So Samus…how are you?" Peach asked, trying not to sound too suspicious

"Fine." Samus replied, before a spoonful of cereal enter her mouth

"Oh…" murmured Peach, "Sleep well?"

Samus nodded her head.

"Oh…" she murmured again, "That's nice."

"Is there something you want to tell me?" she asked, spooning her cereal

"Uh…no…" Peach muttered, deciding now would be a good time to leave

"Peach…don't expect some immediate change." Samus said as Peach left, "There are still things about me that you don't know."

Peach flinched only slightly but soon relaxed.

"I know." She said, "We all know."

Samus looked around the room to the other Smashers; their faces a gaggle of different expressions. Mewtwo floated calmly near the sink, his eyes close as if in deep thought, though a hint of a smile could be seen on his face. The mighty King of the Koopas looked as if he was trying his hardest to hold back a smile, settling on a look of feigned annoyance. The boy wonder known as Young Link had a face beaming with pride, his feeling of accomplishment was heightened as his long ears twitched involuntarily. With eyes closed and a small grin on his features, Pikachu nodded as if coming to some exemplary conclusion about the current situation. Yoshi simply smiled. It was a carefree smile, maybe derived from his peaceful nature or what happened during the night hours. Whatever the reason it was there and it probably would be there for a while. Finally, Peach turned to Samus and Samus to Peach, the two blondes staring at one another for quite some time, until Peach finally spoke.

"It's a start, right?" asked Peach, chuckling sheepishly

A smile tugged on the lips of the bounty hunter as she answered Peach's question while scooping up a spoonful of cereal.

"Yeah, it's a start."

* * *

Hope you've enjoyed this story and the others. This story just came to me and I had to write (even though much of the dialogue is taken from the Metroid Manga, which I have no rights to.). But I had fun writing this and I hope you've had fun reading it. 


	5. Switched Part 1

Have fun with this story. It features the same characters from "Dreamscape".

* * *

Many citizens of Smash City wondered what the Smash Brothers did while they were in their mansion. Now nobody had the courage to actually find out, but they were indeed curious of the going-ons in such a place, filled with such, eccentric fighters (to put it lightly). 

_Pow! Boom! Bang! Smack! Ker-pow!_

A series of blows could be heard connecting in the back of the mansion, in a small plot of low grass; a blonde-haired bounty hunter was getting in a little practice by pummeling on the steadfast punching bag of the Smashers, SandBag. This five-foot, twenty-pound bag of sand stood dutifully in place as Samus virtually committed manslaughter on the blinking white bag.

"Raaaah!" roared Samus, delivering one last, bone-crushing blow to SandBag, effectively caving in its poor face

However, moments later its face popped back out and the receiver of Samus's vicious assault looked completely unscathed. Not a mark could be found on its leather-like hide. SandBag's assaulter stood a few feet away, sweating profusely and breathing heavily. With a day's worth of frustrations let loose on the unbreakable SandBag the skilled hunter let loose a smile of relief.

"Thanks SandBag, I _really_ needed that." Samus said

Though he couldn't speak, the look on his face showed Samus just how happy he was that her abuse on him helped her to relax.

"See ya, SandBag." Replied Samus, waving bye to the unmoving bag

SandBag nodded in acknowledgement. Another good day's work for the punching bag; so he felt he deserved a good rest, so he'd be ready for the next Smasher that would unload on him.

"Time to get something to eat." Thought Samus, making her way to the kitchen after she made her way into the mansion

Opening the doors to the kitchen she was greeted with a familiar sight. Sitting at various counters on stools were those Samus considered her closet friends, even though you could never get her to admit it.

"Hyah Samus!" squealed the high-pitched voice of Peach, which caused Samus to visibly cringe

Well some of them were closer than others, and Peach was definitely listed under "others". But being the nice person she was Samus would at least acknowledge the princess (though at times she referred to Peach as a parrot.).

"Hey Peach." She replied in a less than enthusiastic expression

"Want something to eat?" Peach asked sweetly, "My treat."

Though she was sickeningly sweet and had a horrible choice in clothes (in Samus's opinion) Peach could cook circles around the fearless hunter while Samus herself could barely boil water. And with the feeling of hunger bearing down on her belly, her pride smartly took a back seat.

"Sure Peach." Replied Samus, her tone unchanging

"Great!" Peach squealed again and in response Samus cringed again, "Anything in particular?" she asked

"Surprise me." Replied Samus

With a nod Peach turned to prepare Samus a delicious meal. But the moment she did the elated expression on her face fell to utter depression. Unlike her fellow blonde, Peach wore her emotions like a neon sign set on high. She didn't want the others to see that Peach knew what Samus really thought of her.

"She still doesn't like me much." She thought

After the whole, "going into Samus's dreams" adventure the bounty hunter had seen Peach, Young Link, Pikachu, Yoshi, and even Mewtwo and surprisingly Bowser as Smashers she could trust with her life, but becoming good friends with the Choujin offspring would be a chore, especially for Peach. The two blondes seemed to be on opposite ends of the spectrum and it didn't look like either one would fully understand one another.

"I know what caused her to be the way she is, but I still don't get her." Peach though, "Maybe I never will, "She thought before sighing outwardly

"You okay Peach?" Young Link asked, downing his fifth bottle of milk

"Peach turned to the young boy and her face instantly lifted before she replied.

"Sure Young Link, I'm totally fine!"

"You and that damn milk." Muttered Bowser, "You're gonna be _so_ constipated

"That's cheese." Replied Mewtwo

"Well cheese comes from milk, same thing!" barked Bowser

"Not really." replied Mewtwo

"Meh." Muttered Bowser, returning to his fifteen pounds of steak

Many still mourn for the cow it came from.

"Pika pi, pika chu, pi pi?" asked Pikachu

"Yes." Replied Mewtwo, "And speaking of which it would seem we have been given a package." The psychic cat replied

"Hmm?" Questioned Samus, watching as Yoshi brought in a large box

"Yeah, it was addressed to us." Replied Peach, "It got here a little while ago, just wanted to wait 'til you came back before we opened it." She replied

"It's got no return address and all it says is "From a fan"." Samus commented as she inspected the box

"Well of course, who wouldn't be a fan of me?" Bowser chuckled

"It's posed for _all_ of the Smashers." Samus commented

"Meh." Replied Bowser

"Well let's open this thing up already!" Young Link cried out

Deviating from their meals the Smashers huddled around the box as Yoshi opened it.

"Pika!" squealed Pikachu happily

"Yoshi, yosh." Replied Yoshi, with a grin

"Cool." commented Young Link

"Heh." Chuckled Mewtwo

"Hmm?" wondered Samus

"_Sooooooooooo cute!_" squealed Peach

"Ya know, I was expecting chocolate." Replied Bowser, reaching in and pulling out…

A plushy version of himself, in all his glory. The entire box was filled with plushy versions of every single one of the Smashers, each made with excruciating detail.

"Pika pi!" Pikachu squealed again, pulling out a Pika plushy

"Yoshi!" laughed Yoshi, playing with the head of his plushy

"Hmm, whoever made these took intricate care in creating each one." Replied Mewtwo

"Someone doesn't have a life." Replied Samus, inspecting her own

Her plushy even had a plushy helmet that was removable for the main plushy.

"_Oh_, I think they're absolutely adorable." Cooed Peach, "Mine even has a plushy frying pan."

"Lucky you." Muttered Samus

* * *

As the day dwindled to an end the seven Smashers who were currently in the mansion were busy playing with their plushies, each in their own unique way. 

The ball of electrical might, Pikachu, was charging his with static electricity, watching in amazement over the little plaything's ability to absorb large amounts of electrical energy.

The spiked Koopa King, Bowser, was using his for target practice after he discovered that the plushy was flame retardant.

The dino-dragon, Yoshi, was testing his vast intellect by playing a game of chess with his. Since the plushy was an unmoving toy Yoshi volunteered to move it's pieces for it.

The godly psychic cat, Mewtwo, was practicing exhorting his will on inanimate objects and succeeded in moving the small plushy as if it were a second body. The small collectable laughed in triumph.

The Hylian hero, Young Link, was playing a game of catch with his. Mind you he was alone, but this didn't stop the trouble youth, whose speed along allowed him to catch up with his own throws. It was truly a pathetic sight to behold.

Anyway, the last of the Smashers currently residing in the mansion were in the main living area, sitting on the magical couch with the television on. Peach was playing with her plushy as if it were a baby, cooing at it and commenting about how cute it was every five seconds. Meanwhile Samus was using hers as a stress-reliever, squeezing it in conjunction with Peach's cooing.

"As old as she is, she's acting like a five-year old." Samus thought, "If she says one more thing about how cute that damn thing is, I swear I'll knock her block off!" she growled in her head

Luckily for Peach, the Mushroom princess decided to end her endearing words and ask Samus a question.

"You know, we should definitely dress-up and go out on the town tonight." Replied Peach, "Just us girls. I think it'll be fun."

Samus turned to Peach as if she had grown a second head and a tail with a face on it. Peach had to have known Samus long enough to know what she was going to say next.

"No." she replied

"Oh come on, it'll be great." Replied Peach, standing up

"I even have a dress that'll go with…your figure." Peach replied, eyeing Samus

Samus didn't like the way Peach commented on her and was quick to retort.

"No." Samus replied, "And what about my figure?" she questioned with a glare

The glare flew over Peach's radar for she never noticed it and went right on with her explanation.

"Well…you're pretty buff and to be honest, a lot of dresses just aren't made for muscular girls. It's a crying shame." Peach replied, "But I have the perfect dress for a person like you who would probably rip through any other dress if they moved funny!" she said cheerfully

Samus was torn between throwing the couch through the window to relieve her anger or throwing _**Peach**_ through the window to relieve her anger.

"I mean, we don't want you look like a fool in public." Replied Peach

Luckily for Peach, Samus decided on the former.

Outside a bird was picking a few twigs, most likely finding material for a nest. Today fortune would smile on the small avian creature as a couch was thrown through a window, scattering glass and splintering wood as it was smashed through. Miraculously the divine couch of the main living area remained unscathed.

"I'll be in my room." Calmly replied Samus as she took off

"Was it something I said?" Peach wondered, blissfully unaware

* * *

Night fell on the mansion and sleep fell upon the Smashers. The halls were quiet, veiled in a blanket of shadows, perfect conditions for an uninvited guest. Slowly moving through the halls, a shadowy figure emerged, thoughts of mischief on its mind. 

_Snore…snore…snore…snore…snore…snore…snore…snore…snore…snore…snore…_

Bowser's deep throated snores could be heard in the hallway, even with the room door closed. In his room the Koopa King laid haphazardly on his back on his specially designed bed (How else do you think a spiked tortoise that weighs over two tons sleeps on a bed without crushing it?). His large chest rose and fell as he slept, his plushy resting on his chest, rising and falling with it as well.

A few feet away from his bed a small shadow appeared and moments later a figure rose from the shadow, staring at the large koopa in front of it. The darkness of the figure hid its identity, but slender hands could be seen through the darkness. Soon the hands began to glow a dark, purplish color and soon after, the plushy.

Moments later, Bowser gasped suddenly before falling under once again. In the dark a bright smile of success pierced the shadows, giving the room an eerie glow.

Laying on a pile of pillows the electrical mouse was curled up tightly with his plushy, deep in dreamland.

"Pi…pi…pi…pi…pi…" chirped Pikachu in his sleep, until his plushy began to glow purple

Lying in his bed, his plushy on the floor, Young Link the fighter of Hyrule slumbered away calmly through the night, though his hand slipped from the bed and fell to the floor, brushing up against his glowing plushy.

In another room another Smasher was curled up on a soft blanket, his small plushy leaning against his side. So deep in slumber, Yoshi never noticed his glowing collectable until it was too late.

Floating in the middle of his room the psychic cat Mewtwo was asleep, meditating at the same time, his plushy resting in his lap comfortably. Even with the immense powers of the mind that Mewtwo had he couldn't stop the glow his plushy began to emit.

The shadowy figure that had been looming about the mansion made its way to Peach's room, dark powers dancing at her sides. She stood at the foot of the princess's extravagant bed and raised her hands. However, before they could begin to glow the sleeping princess awoke, a dark feeling rising in her. Looking about her room Peach searched for any intruders and as she laid her eyes on her door, it closed, which worried her.

"Who's there?" she called, but nobody answered

In a slight panic, Peach rose from her bed, her pink nightgown swaying at her ankles. Luckily she had her trusty frying pan with her as she walked to her door and opened it up slightly, looking into the hall. Out of the corner of her eye she swore she saw something move through the shadows. But by the time she fully exited her room there was nothing.

"Bowser? Young Link? Pikachu? Yoshi? Mewtwo? Samus? Anyone?" she called, moving through the halls, "This better not be a trick or something."

No response.

"Hello?" she called near a particular Smasher's door, "Come on out whoever you are!" she called

"Who's yelling outside my…"

So surprised by the sudden noise, Peach swung her frying pan on reflex.

_Clang!_

After the connection Peach heard a body hit the ground and slowly opened her eyes to see who. She cringed when she discovered who it was.

"Oops."

_A few minutes later…_

"Ow…what hit me?" asked Peach's victim, Samus, as she rose from the floor

"Er…you uh…fell." Replied Peach, smiling as brightly as she could

"Uh…are you sure? I swear something metal hit me." Samus replied, rubbing her head

"Nope, you definitely fell; I saw it with my own eyes." Peach replied quickly

Whether she truly believed her or if the hit had screwed with her logic, Samus accepted Peach's explanation as she rubbed her head. Luckily for the bounty hunter she was used to being hit so it much cause for concern.

"What are you doing wandering around the halls anyway?" Samus asked, "You know you woke me up and I hate being woken up!" she growled

"Someone else was wandering around, I'm sure of it." Peach replied, "I just don't know who."

"Peach, are you sure you just didn't imagine it?" Samus asked, "Go back to sleep."

"We have five other Smashers in here with a tendency to mess around…" Peach replied, trailing off on purpose

Peach did have a point. If anyone was messing around, it would probably be the others. But Samus really didn't want to put up with having to yell and most likely fight with them. Unfortunately she didn't have a choice.

_Fwoosh!_

A fireball smashed into Samus's door frame, blowing the bounty hunter in her room while Peach was sent careening down the hallway.

"What the…?" Peach began, but never go the chance to finish as Young Link slashed at her with his blade

She barely managed to avoid the blow, stumbling away to get some distance, but Pikachu came up quickly and swiped her feet, sending her to the floor once again. Peach looked up just in time to see a Shadow Ball barreling down on her, luckily she was saved before the dark ball of energy could connect. Rushing from her room, Varia Suit and all, Samus fired a fully charged Charge Shot at the oncoming attack. The two blasts smashed into one another and before long effectively canceled one another out.

"Enough of this!" yelled Peach, rising up, brandishing her frying pan, "What's up with you guys!?"

There was no response from the group of attacking Smashers. Aside from a moan or groan the attacking Smashers were almost completely quiet as they charged the females.

"Yoshi…don't make me hurt you!" growled Samus, blocking Yoshi's powerful head butts

Mini-Shadow Balls, arrows, and small bursts of electricity came Peach's way, but the agile princess blocked them all with her reliable frying pan. The deflected attacks flew in all random directions, leaving nothing more than few scuff marks on the walls and floors.

"Okay, I don't know what's going on but I don't want to fight!" yelled Peach, hoping she could get through to her seemingly deranged friends, "Please, let's just talk about this!"

They didn't listen to her, but instead combined their attacks; encasing one of Young Link's bombs in electrical and shadow energy to create…a Thunder Shadow Bomb.

"That doesn't look good…" muttered Peach, readying her frying pan

The bomb was thrown and when it came close Peach swung to deflect, which was a very bad idea. The resulting explosion threw both shadow and electrical energy into her frying pan, which caused the princess incredible pain as well as having the power to shoot her down the hallway, right into the awaiting arms of Bowser.

Meanwhile, the intergalactic bounty hunter was having problems of her own. She could have dispatched with Yoshi with a well place Super Missile and normally she would, but something was different about how the dino-dragon was acting. Yoshi was not one to just fight for not apparent reason or blatantly ignore someone talking to him. Something was definitely up.

"Yoshi, listen to me…" she tried to say, but Yoshi was having none off it

Barraging her with a pummeling series of kicks the long-tongued fiend kicked off her arm cannon and swung his head around, smashing it into her and sending her straight into the mountain of muscle known as Bowser.

"Grraaaaaah!" she roared, "Let me go!"

However, even with the phenomenal strength granted to her by her suit, Samus was no match for the unrivaled monstrosity that was Bowser's raw power.

"Good job." They heard someone say

Stepping aside, Mewtwo, Young Link, Yoshi, and Pikachu allowed the speaker to reveal themself.

"No way…" muttered Peach, her eyes going as wide as saucers, "Mario sealed you away…"

"Oh he did…but now I'm back."

"Peach…why am I staring at a mirror image of you?" Samus asked, a curious eyebrow raised at the doppelganger

"That's because that's Shadow Queen, Demon of Darkness." Peach replied, "But you can't be here…Mario…"

"Sealed me away." Shadow Queen replied, "No need to repeat."

"How did you get out?" Peach demanded

"That's for me to know and for you to find out…but let's just say someone gave me a_ hand_." Shadow Queen replied, "However, they couldn't return me to my full form so I am forced to take the appearance of your body…with a few _improvements._"

"Well…at least you're not wearing pink…" Samus commented

"Hey!" shrieked Peach, "And what's going on!?' she barked

"Why don't you ask your friend over there? She's probably already figured it out." Shadow Queen replied

"Huh?" muttered Peach, turning to Samus

"She took over their minds." Samus replied, "I could tell by the look in their eyes."

Peach raised an eyebrow before looking into the eyes of her friends. Her eyebrows went up in shock as she realized that there eyes were clouded over with darkness, complete and utter darkness.

"But how...?" Peach asked, dumbfounded

"The plushies…you sent them, didn't you?" Samus inquired

"You're correct…" replied the Shadow Queen, "I created each one by hand. They're vessels for the spirit." She replied

"So you didn't take over their minds, you just…sucked their spirits out and put them in plushies?" Peach asked, "Not very menacing." She thought

Plushies stealing souls...who knew?

"Ah yes, why fuddle with the mind when the spirit is so much more, _vulnerable_."

"Where are our friends!?" Peach demanded

"Your friends…heh heh heh heh…they're right here." Shadow Queen replied, opening a large bag she had with her to reveal the plushies of her possessed friends

"Help!" cried the plushy of Young Link

"Pikachu!" cried the plushy of Pikachu

"Yoshi!" cried the plushy of Yoshi

"Return me to my body!" yelled the plushy of Mewtwo

"I don't do puny!" yelled the plushy of Bowser

"Aren't they **adorable**?" Shadow Queen cackled

"Let them go or else!" barked Samus, trying her best to break free of Bowser

"You don't give any orders, only I do now." She said, "Boys, the plushies." She said, referring to Mewtwo and Young Link

The two Smashers lifted up the Samus and Peach plushies and pointed them at their respective blondes.

"I'll finish up with you two and then wait for the rest to show up." Shadow Queen said, "In no time I'll have control of every single one of you Smashers." She said

As gloved hands began to glow the two femme fatales could feel their very spirits being pulled from their bodies. Struggle as they may they could not free themselves from their possessed captor and it would only take moments before their spirits were ripped from their very bodies.

"Can't let…her win…" Peach thought, summoning the last of her strength in order to…cry

Tears began to flow down the face of Peach until a full blown river flooded from the princess's face.

_Seconds later…_

"_Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!!!!!_"

The hallway of the Super Smash Brother's mansion became the backdrop for white-water rafting as Peach's emotions took over. Had it not been for the fact that many of the windows were open in the mansion the Smashers may have drowned due to Peach's overly sensitive emotional abilities. In the confusion Samus and Peach were thrown out of one of the mansion's window, from the second floor. Luckily they landed on their feet and without hesitation they broke out into a run to get as far away from their possessed allies as possible.

* * *

In such a hurry to get away the two girls didn't stop running until they reached the city, panting hard. It was a run, but they both thought they had to be far enough away to be safe, for the moment. It was at this time that the blondes made a startling realization. 

"Peach, can I ask you something?" Samus asked, stooped over to catch her breath

"Yeah…what is it Samus?" replied Peach

"Why am I in a nightgown?" she asked

"Huh?"

"And why am I looking at myself?" she asked, "Please tell me I'm just looking in a mirror."

"Well then I must be looking in the same mirror 'cuz I'm looking at _myself_." Replied Peach

Both girls straightened up and happened to look into a glass window in front of them. Peach's jaw dropped as she uttered a horrific scream in an entirely different voice.

"_Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_" she screeched,

"Samus…what's going on?" asked Peach, or rather Peach in Samus's body…

"Why? Does someone up there hate me or something?" Samus asked, "Anybody, anybody but her…" she mumbled

"Did we switch bodies?" Peach asked

Samus nodded, to stricken by the fact of the switch to speak.

"Oh no!" squealed Peach in dismay, "I gotta see what I look like!" she said, frantically pulling at the Varia Suit's helmet

Samus couldn't bring herself to tell Peach that it came off rather simply; she was still in shock over the whole ordeal. Eventually the switched princess managed to get the helmet off and stared at the window the moment it was off. Unlike Samus she didn't scream her head off, but the look on her face; or rather Samus's face was an obvious window to what she was feeling.

"No, no, no, no…" she said, "This won't do." She said, "Samus!?" she squealed

Taking hold of herself with a frantic look in her eyes she began to bawl right in front of herself.

"Samus! This is _horrible_!" she cried, "Shadow Queen is out, our friends are captured and we've switched bodies!" she cried, shaking Samus for all that she was worth, "And on top of that my hair's a mess!" She said, "I don't want to be stuck looking like _this_ for the rest of my life! What'll we do Samus, what'll we **do!**"

"Peach…" Samus said, trying to quell the raging female, "Peach." She said again, a little louder, "_PEACH!_" she yelled, exploding into a fury, cracking the window in front of her

Peach quickly backed a few feet away and allowed Samus time to cool off.

"Whoa…" muttered Samus, looking at her now pampered hands in disbelief, "What just happen?"

"T-Those were my emo-powers at work." Replied Peach with a slight quiver

Peach had never realized just how quick to anger she was until she saw it first hand.

"Sorry…" Samus said, before returning to what she was trying to say before, "Look. I'm not exactly sure how, but we will take care of that Shadow Queen, we will save the boys, we will get our bodies back, and _I will_ get you back for that crack about how I look."

Peach smiled sheepishly but nodded. If anyone could get them out of this, it was Samus.

"Come on, let's find somewhere secluded." Samus said

"But Samus…I'm not that kind of girl…especially with myself."

Samus wasn't sure if Peach was kidding or not and she _really_ didn't want to figure it out.

"Just come on!" she barked, grabbing hold of Peach's (or rather her) wrist and pulling

That's when the petite woman realized just how different Peach's body was to her own. For Samus it felt like pulling a fidgeting boulder. It took quite a bit of effort on Samus's part but she managed to pull Peach into a dark alley, away from any prying eyes.

"Okay…" Samus said, getting her bearings, "First things first…I gotta get out of this thing." She said, referring to the pink nightgown, "It's a bit drafty. Couldn't you wear something practical to sleep?"

"Well _sorry_. I didn't think I'd wake up in the middle of the night to fight my possessed friends and an evil demon I thought was sealed away. If that had been the case I would have wore full-body armor to bed."

"Cut the lip and help me find something to wear."

"How about I rip your spirit out instead." They heard someone say

Turning to the sound the two blondes watched as the Shadow Queen emerged from…well…the shadows, hence the name.

"Hiding in the shadows. That's a poor choice against the likes of me." The Shadow Queen said, "Boys." She called, and at her commanded the possessed Smashers appeared, "Get them." She said

"Run!" yelled Samus

Both girls took off in a flash. Well Samus anyway, Peach was having a hard time maneuvering in her new body. She felt sluggish, almost as if gravity had it out for her.

"_Samus!_" she whined, "Wait up!"

Samus looked back to see that she had very much left Peach in the dust.

"Whoa…didn't realize Peach was this fast." Samus thought as she ran

For Samus it didn't even seem as if she had much weight at all, almost as if Peach was lighter than a feather. Rounding a corner Samus came face-to-face with Yoshi, a dark blank look in his eyes.

"Crap…" muttered Samus, turning around to run down another alley

However, that escape route was soon cut off as Mewtwo teleported into her path.

"Hell…" she muttered and tore down the middle of the alley way in an attempt to get away

But stopping her in her tracks was Young Link, sword drawn.

"Damn…" Samus muttered, backing away slowly

It was at this time that Peach had finally caught up, with Bowser and Pikachu right on her tail, effectively boxing the two in.

"_Uh_…" she groaned, "I'm running out of curses…" muttered Samus

Soon the girls were back-to-back, surrounded by their under the influence friends.

"This doesn't look very good." Peach commented

"Yah think?" quipped Samus, "We can't handle them all at once. Need to get out of here." She said, looking towards the rooftops

"Just give it up already." Shadow Peach said, coming into view, "I'm taking control and there is nothing you can do to stop me, so make it easier on yourselves and just surrender."

"The only thing I'm gonna do is send you break your ribs after a get my body back!" barked Samus, "And besides, you haven't caught us yet." She said, bending down

The switched bounty hunter aimed to jump for the nearby fire escape, hoping Peach would follow her actions. If they were quick enough they would be able to get some distance between themselves and their foes before they could catch up. However, her plan didn't go exactly as she had originally thought. It was not that she didn't make the jump, that wasn't the problem. The problem was that she overshot the jump, flying clean past the ladder leading to the fire escape. It wasn't until she scaled half the building did she realize just how high Peach could jump.

"Wow…what a jump." Peach thought, looking up at her high flying female-in-crime, "Oh, I should follow." She thought, bending down to jump

Jumping, Peach didn't realize that her weight wouldn't let her jump nearly as high as Samus did until she smashed head first into the side of fire escape, bending the bars. Luckily she was wearing a helmet. Before she fell back down to the awaiting Smashers she through out her right harm, forgetting that it was surrounding by a cannon. Although, the cannon automatically released its tractor beam, which shot up, right toward Samus who had grabbed the edge of the top most part of the fire escape.

"Huh?" Samus mumbled, hearing the crackle of electricity

By the time she looked down the beam had already wrapped around her leg, sending a high level of volts into her.

_ZAP!_

With electricity pouring into her it was all Samus had to keep from releasing her grip and falling. Meanwhile, the tractor part of the word "tractor beam" kicked in, but in reverse, pulling Peach up toward Samus quickly.

"Watch out!" yelled Peach, but there was really nothing Samus could do at the moment

_WHAM!_

Well…at least they could say them made it to the roof of the building, just not in the way that either would have liked.

"I loath you." Muttered Samus

"Sorry."

But before Samus could rant any further Mewtwo had already flown up to greet them. Without thinking Samus threw her frying pan, which she pulled out from within her nightgown, at the floating cat but Mewtwo dodged, powering up a Shadow Ball moments later. He would have thrown it had it not been for the fact that the frying pan acted like a boomerang. And like all boomerangs, they had a knack for second trips.

_CLANG!_

The frying pan cluttered on the rooftop violently while Mewtwo fell to the ground. Samus was quick to retrieve it before bouncing away like a jackrabbit over the rooftops.

"Samus! Stop leaving me!" yelled Peach, taking off after her

Meanwhile, Shadow Peach looked at Mewtwo in disgraced as the psychic cat picked himself up after he crashed landed.

"This is getting me nowhere. We'd eventually catch them but it take to long." She said, "But I have a better idea." She said, smiling wickedly, "Why try to catch what will come to you eventually?"

* * *

"Peach." Called Samus, "We can stop running now." Samus said, landing on the roof of a convenience store 

"Whew, we got away."

"No, they just stopped following." Replied Samus

"Oh."

Samus sighed and sat down, her face was downtrodden and she looked sapped of energy.

"You okay?" Peach asked, joining her on the roof and removing the suit's helmet

Samus sighed again, not responding.

"Samus?" Peach called, "Are you hurt?" she asked

"No." replied Samus

"Then what's wrong?" Peach asked

Samus gave her a look as if the answer to that question was painstakingly obvious. But Peach had an oblivious look on her face, which was weird because Samus was really looking at an oblivious look on her original face. Even though she really wasn't up to it Samus decided to explain anyway.

"Look at me…look at you." She replied, looking at her gown, "_Normally_ we couldn't handle all those guys at once but now, like this we're just running like scared little mice." She said, "That stupid Shadow Queen's gonna turn this city upside down with the others and all we can do is _hopefully_ not get caught and wait for help, and that's if we're lucky." She said, before sighing yet again, "Oh what am I saying. Things are hopeless. We're screwed. We might as well leave the city before Shadow Queen catches up with us cause…"

_SMACK!!_

Samus put her hand to her cheek (or rather Peach's cheek) after the metallic slap of Peach's (or Samus') hand going across her face. She looked up in disbelief and saw Peach look back down with a face of irritation.

* * *

Ha! Taking the story off right here! Hope you enjoyed the first part; the second part wraps up this little adventure so don't go anywhere. 


	6. Switched Part 2

Here's part two of Smash Chronicles, Switched. I think you'll enjoy the ending, even if it'll leave you with more questions than answers.

* * *

"What's wrong with you!?" Peach barked, her face with an easily recognizable look of anger on it, "What is with all this running away talk!? Are you going soft on me?" 

Peach was peeved, that was a given. But the reason behind this anger was odd. Though mad at Samus for giving up the fight so easily she was also mad at her self somewhat, or more so her body. Before the switch Samus was one never to back down, though she always analyzed a situation carefully before jumping in, she still never gave up the fight once it started and Peach wondered if the different body that Samus was currently residing in was what was making Samus move toward defeat.

"Look Peach, before you on and make some big speech about how I shouldn't give up and should face this problem head-on you really need to look at this situation seriously." Samus replied, "We're outnumbered, out muscled, and out of luck. Including the fact that we barely know how to control each other's bodies, do you really thing we stand a chance?"

"I know." Replied Peach, her anger lessening, "But I don't run away from my problems, never did."

"Yeah, you get captured by them."

"Hey…"

"We don't have a chance." Samus repeated, breaking her off

"So, it's better than running away. Have you ever run away?"

"Do countdowns to self-destruction of a space satellite and/or planet count?"

"No."

"Then I guess not." Samus sighed, "So, what do we do?"

"Why ask me?"

"You're the one shouting we shouldn't run away." Samus answered, "I thought you might have some sort of plan."

"Uh, not really. Other than barging in and taking the Shadow Queen down." She replied

"Not gonna work." Samus replied, "We'd have to plow through the others first to even get a chance at her and there's no way we could fight them all."

"Yeah." Mumbled Peach, "Too bad we can't just get them to fight each other. That'd be a whole lot easier."

It was at that moment that an idea hit Samus, a rather clever idea.

"Peach, you're a genius!" squealed Samus, "Even if you act a little daft."

"Thanks!" Peach cheered, "Hey, wait a sec, what do you mean by daft?"

"Never mind that, come here." Samus directed, "I think I have a plan."

Peach scooted closer in order to listen in on this 'plan' that Samus had cooking.

* * *

"Ah…this is such a great place to begin my conquest of this city." Shadow Queen said as she strolled about an abandoned football stadium, "It's large, but enclosed, and since nobody ever comes over here they never realize what I am doing." She said, "And by the time they do it'll be far too late." 

She then turned to her minions, a sinister grin across her face.

"Now then, underlings, remove all of this refuse from the ground. I would like my domain to be clean." She said, pointing to the possessed Smashers

Without delay they went to the task of clearing the stadium of the many things that littered its floor; garbage, discard food-stuffs, debris, etc. While the Smashers went about their orders, the Shadow Queen decided to give the stadium a face lift, by walking to the middle of the field and placing her hand on the fifty yard line. Strange dark lights emanated from her palm, shooting off in random directions, or what one would think. Quickly the dark lights formed a pattern on the ground. Whatever it was it was foreign to the Smashers, though they probably wouldn't have asked since they were basically reduced to drooling puppets. In seconds the entire field was engulfed in the strange pattern, the artificial grass turning dark while the goalposts morphed into gruesome looking dark pikes.

"_Perfect._" She purred, "A little work and this place will suit me, for the time being at least." She said

_Meanwhile…_

"Cree-py." Mumbled Peach, having watched the horrible transformation of the abandoned field

"Yeah. But we have other things to worry about than some crazy demon's styling methods." Samus replied, "Look Peach, we can still turn back now. I _still_ don't think we have a chance."

"Maybe not, but I'd rather go down fighting than run from _her_." She replied

"Yeah, I guess so."

"So, do we rush in and take them out?"

"I think we should try this with a little more finesse." Samus replied, "Follow me."

* * *

The simplified Young Link was busy moving a few boxes around, trying to find a place to dump the discarded rectangular containers. Suddenly, he heard a noise, and it sounded like footsteps. Young Link had been ordered to make sure that anybody that came into the stadium was to be taken out and brought to Shadow Queen, so the possessed Hylian dropped the boxes in his hand and raced off to where he heard the noise. He ended up running into a dark hallway. 

_WHAM! BAM! BOOM!_

_Moments later…_

"Well that was easy." Replied Peach, having finished tying up a dazed Young Link

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves now." Samus noted, "We still aren't out of the frying pan. Come on." She said

Peach followed behind Samus closely, a little too close for the body-swapped bounty hunter.

"Do you have to walk so close?" Samus asked

"Sorry." She said

With that they continued their trek, until Samus could feel Peach's breath on her neck.

"Look Peach, it's hard enough walking in this damn nightgown, but could you please stop breathing down my neck?"

"But Samus, I'm over here." Replied Peach, at Samus' _side_

"Oh…damn."

_BOOM!_

Shadow Queen watched as Samus and Peach flew from the bleachers in a blaze of shadow flames to land in the football field.

"I was wondering when you two would arrive." She said

"Don't like to disappoint." Muttered Samus, standing to her feet, "Okay Shadow Peach, Let's go!" she barked

"It's Shadow Queen!" Shadow Queen barked back

"Ya look like Peach so that's what I'm calling ya, deal!"

"Why you…!" she growled, ready to charge head-on, until something hit her, "_Fuwhahahahaha._" She cackled, "You are good." She told Samus, "Trying to anger me so that I would rush off foolishly and allow you the opportunity to defeat me." She said, "No wonder you are such a powerful bounty hunter. But unlike you, I don't need to fight. Boys."

Smashing through a decrepit doorway Bowser made his way on the scene, flames licking at his lips and his muscles poised for battle. In a flash of light Pikachu was on the football field, electricity cackling madly at his cheeks as if it were alive. From a rolling egg popped out Yoshi, the look of darkness plain as day in his eyes. Appearing from seemingly nowhere, the psychic cat Mewtwo made his entrance, paws glowing with shadow energy. And finally, the boy of Hyrule, Young Link…wiggled his way on the field, still unable to free himself from the tight ropes that Samus and Peach used on him.

"Ugh…" muttered Shadow Queen, waving her hand in Young Link's direction

Dark flames ignited the ropes and in moments Young Link was able to break free from his bondage.

"She can make flames appear from her hands?" Thought Samus, "Gotta watch out for that." She told herself, "But I wonder, just what else can she do?"

"Now then…this is your last chance. If you give up now I'll be merciful and spare you the pain you'll be going through. I may need you in one piece, but that doesn't mean you have to be conscious when I take your sprites."

"Shove it." Both Peach and Samus told her

"Insolent little…crush them."

Both females stood back-to-back as the five Smashers rushed them.

"Remember Peach, we stay together, no matter what."

"Okay Samus."

"We're gonna need a miracle to pull this off." Samus murmured

"Or we make our own."

Mewtwo was the first to attack, launching a Shadow Ball at the two females. Samus hopped up and Peach whirled around, smashing the Shadow Ball with the side of her arm cannon. Instead of igniting immediately the Shadow Ball was deflected off the alien weaponry and shot towards an advancing Pikachu who didn't have time to evade.

_Boom!_

The electric mouse bounced away as Young Link took his place, his sword slashing down toward Peach. Peach blocked, letting her weight pull her down after the strike, thus throwing Young Link off balance. As the boy faltered Samus took hold of his arm and threw him at Yoshi, who took the boy head on. As they tumbled away the claws of Bowser sailed through the air, ready the crush them under their power. Peach ducked, while Samus rolled over Peach's back to avoid the blow, allowing the large claw to slam into the dirt. The impact kicked up dirt, blinding Mewtwo slightly and giving Samus the chance to grab Mewtwo and fling him at Bowser. Unlike Young Link and Yoshi, Mewtwo's much small frame didn't topple Bowser, but it left him open to a fully charged Charge Shot blast.

_Blam!_

"Not bad Peach, not bad." Samus replied, "Didn't think you'd learn how to use the Charge Shot so quickly."

"Well it wasn't easy." replied Peach, "This suit, its almost like its alive." she said

"It responds partially to your thoughts, but you're the key element in using it. It's almost like an extension of your body. You guide, it follows." Samus explained

"I so wish I had my frying pan right now." Peach told her

"I wish I had some clothes." Samus quipped

Both girls we breathing hard, but looked none the worst for wear and Shadow Queen didn't look the bit pleased by their antics.

"I said crush them you fools!" she barked, "Get up!"

On command they rose to their feet, no sign of wear among any of them. Samus looked toward Shadow Queen for a moment, trying to think of the best way to approach attacking her. But without dealing with her possessed friends she would never get the chance as she dodge a bolt of electricity and smashed her frying pan into Bowser's jaw. The Koopa King skidded back as Yoshi came from his side, swinging his tail at her. Both Samus and Peach spun around, effectively putting Peach in the way of the attack, which she blocked with her arm cannon. Yoshi kicked of the arm cannon in an attempt to follow up his attack, but the girls spun again, placing Samus in the Yoshi's path and his move was quickly interrupted. Using a useful tip she had gotten from Peach, Samus had pulled a turnip from the earth and hefted it at the large dino-dragon. The destructive veggie ricocheted off of Yoshi's head, causing him to overshoot his attack and smash into Mewtwo and sent the mind-bearing feline back and into Pikachu.

"Idiots, they're making you attack yourselves!" The Shadow Queen yelled

But this insight dawned on the possessed Smashers a moment too late as the spiraling turnip from earlier was forcefully kicked toward Young Link, making a plant-to-head collision on the young boy. As Young Link fell Samus saw an opening and took it, making a mad dash for Shadow Queen, but Yoshi and Bowser would have none of it. With Yoshi coming up from behind and Bowser standing in her path, Samus would have to hope Peach would come through for her because the switched Smasher couldn't afford to stop her advancement on the demon of shadows.

There was no worry on Shadow Queens face, for she was confident that Samus would never actually make it to her, especially with Yoshi and Bowser closing in.

"I hope this works." Peach thought, bringing her arm back and then throwing it forward

The fates seemed to be on her side that moment for a beam of electrical energy shot forth from her arm cannon, cackling madly through the air as it made its way toward Yoshi. The dino in question was too focused on stopping Samus to notice the attack, getting a few volts of electricity sent through him for his negligence.

Samus watched as Bowser spread his arms, making a virtual wall between himself and Shadow Queen, but Samus was not daunted by this seemingly impregnable mountain of muscle and kept running straight ahead.

"Samus, look out!" Peach yelled

Samus didn't look back toward Peach to see what was up, but instead jumped up into the air. Bowser's gaze traveled upward toward Samus so he never saw the make-shift mace, normally known as Yoshi, crash into him.

_WHAM!_

The impact was astounding and powerful enough to topple the Koopa King, allowing Samus free range of the Shadow Queen. After landing Samus pulled her fist back as she approached the demon, hell bent on taking her down in one blow.

"What ever she can do I'll take her down before she can do it!" Samus thought

Having not been prepared for a fight the Shadow Queen was a little taken back at the speed Samus approached her at, knowing full well she wouldn't be able to dodge the punch that Samus was about to unleash upon her. Luckily for Shadow Queen she didn't have to worry about dodging.

Throwing her fist forward with all her might Samus was sure the attack would connect and hopefully put and end to this battle quickly. But moments before contact Samus saw Shadow Queen's eyes glow bright red and before she realized what this meant, the switched fighter felt a couple hundred volts of electricity rip through her.

"_Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!_"

"Samus!" Peach cried and tried to aid her floundering friend, but Yoshi, throwing his full weight into a tackle, stopped her cold

"_Fuwhahahahahahahaha!_" cackled Shadow Queen, looking upon the fidgeting form of Samus, "You really thought you could finish me? Foolish girl."

Samus groaned as she tried to stand, her body still flashing with ambient dark electricity.

"Hmph…are still trying to rise? I have already told you, it's hopeless to go against me." She said, until she notice Samus ball her fist, "Foolish." She murmured as Samus quickly rose and threw her fist at her once again

_Whoosh!_

A foul wind escaped the mouth of the Shadow Queen and in moments Samus was encased in a block of black ice.

"Well then, that should _cool_ you off." Mocked the Shadow Queen, giggling somewhat at her wit

It didn't take long for the lack of oxygen to get to Samus, her eyes already clouding over, but she couldn't move an inch, incased in the block of black ice as she was. Peach wanted to help Samus, but she had her hands full trying to fend off the five crazed Smashers who held her back.

"Do not worry. I won't let you suffer for long." She said, raising her hand, "Let me, heat things up for you."

Then with a snap of her fingers Samus lit up like a Christmas tree, the black ice around her replaced with black flames.

"Sam…" Peach tried to call, but was blown away by a powerful burst of psychic energy

Peach was no better off than Samus was, if not worst. The princess had been reduced to a punching bag by the possessed Smashers. The group smashing her into one another with powerful attacks. Flashing lights and alarms blared in her helmet but Peach hadn't a clue what they meant, but could guess they weren't good.

As for Samus, the nightgown-wearing warrior was slipping into unconsciousness, the three-pronged attack that Shadow Queen had hit her with having done a number on her.

"Silly mortal, to truly think you had the power to stop me!?" she said as the dark flames around Samus dissipated, leaving only a slightly smoldering girl in its wake, "But I must commend you on your efforts, however foolish they were." She told the downed Smasher, "Such a spirit will make a prominent addition to my collection."

Reaching into her bag Shadow Queen produced the Samus Aran plushy, holding it toward Samus.

"I missed acquiring your soul once." She said, "I will not miss a second time." She replied, her hand glowing an inky black

Samus could feel a penetrating coldness in her chest and the feeling of something being pulled from her. She wanted to pull back but felt as if the thing she was pulling for was untouchable.

"Guess this is it. I knew we'd never win but at least we tried." Samus thought, "It's gonna suck now that my body's gonna be used by someone like her while I spend the rest of my existence in a collectable. Who knew I'd go out like that?" she wondered, her spirit slowly leaving her, "That smug look on her faces really pisses me off though. If there's one thing I regret is that it's not being able to pound her face in."

Samus was mad. But not like usual when she was facing down Space Pirates and dealing with bounties. No, this anger seemed to stem from nothing, as if it were pure anger itself. The flames of this anger may have been lit by Shadow Queen and her actions, but the truth behind the matter was that this anger could not be identified, it was just there, and it was growing.

"Peach...and her...damn emotions." Samus growled in her head

Even her thoughts seemed to be disconnected with the feeling of her soul being ripped out.

"If I feel one thing too strongly...something happens...sadness...a flood...happiness...flight...anger..."

An idea was coming to Samus, a foolhardy idea that had no real path to success. But it was the only thing she had at the moment and Samus was ready to take it.

"Alright Samus…" she told herself, trying to prep herself for what was coming, "Don't hold back, just let it go, all of it."

"What are you mumbling about?" the Shadow Queen asked, annoyed

"_Get Away!_"

A sudden burst of energy threw Shadow Queen thirty yards down field, smashing into the corrupted artificial turf. Dark blades of grass went into the air after her impact and for a few moments the shadow demon was dazed.

"So this is what it's like." Samus thought, her body brimming with unrestrained power

Samus' mind was clouding over with one, powerful emotion…anger. The woman barely had the state-of-mind to keep herself from losing all control; the feeling of rage was just that great! As she targeted her adversary she vaguely wondered just how Peach was able to handle the pull her emotions had on her. It was as if the dam burst and now a never-ending flood of power was flowing out of her, an untamed beast that had been lying dormant within the princess' body. The power scared Samus and yet it was like a drug and she was addicted to it. If Samus was a lesser woman in terms of discipline she was sure she would have been swept up in the energy coming from her.

"How dare you!" roared Shadow Queen, rising to her feet, "You will pay dearly for you defiance!" she bark

Samus had not made eye-contact with Shadow Queen yet, but her words didn't fall of deaf ears.

"Do you ever shut up?"

"You insolent little brat!" Shadow Queen barked, "I will cause you pain beyond you feeble comprehension!"

"Oh really, I would like to see that, _Shadow Peach!_" she yelled, glaring at her enemy

Against her will Shadow Queen took a step back from the glare she received from Samus. It was piercing, as if Samus was looking into her own dark soul.

"Y-you don't frighten me." The Shadow Queen told her, stuttering somewhat, "Besides, I have no need to fight you when I have puppets to do it for me." She said, snapping her fingers

On command Bowser, Young Link, Pikachu, Yoshi, and Mewtwo left Peach, having driven her into a wall, to go and do the bidding of their mistress. They quickly surrounded Samus, disregarding the flames that leaked from her body, ignoring the fact that the air was heavy with rampant energy.

"Understand? You haven't a chance." She said more confidently, "This is your final chance. Surrender now or face a painful defeat." She told Samus

"I choose neither."

"Fine then, show her no mercy."

All five charged her at once, coming at her from all sides. Samus dug her feet into the turf, clenching her fists tightly as they approached. Bowser slashed at her but she was able to move her head just enough to avoid the meat of the attack, though his claw racked her cheek slightly, drawing blood. Trying to use his weight to his advantage Bowser attempted to flatten Samus…that was until her elbow collided with his jaw. Swing his tail at her Mewtwo tried to smack Samus away but she put her arm up to block the blow. Not to be outdone Mewtwo wrapped his tail around her arm and pulled himself toward her, a paw glowing with shadow energy, though Samus' fist-to-face assault stopped that attack. A small ball of electricity was fired at Samus and on impact sent a few volts through her. This attack was courtesy of the electric mouse known as Pikachu. But when Pikachu tried to go in for a Skull Bash Samus' knee to Pikachu's chin movement hampered Pikachu's attempt. Young Link, with his sword swinging action, vertically slashed at Samus' but Samus sidestepped the attack. Ducking down and spinning on his heel Young Link fired a kick to her side, connecting but not causing as much damage as first thought. The ill-thought plan of attack resulted in Samus driving her heal into the side of his face. A green tail sliced through the air as it made its way toward Samus, but the blonde would not have any of that, putting both arms up to block the blow. Without budging an inch she held her ground as Yoshi pushed away after the failed attack. After a quick spin her foot came cascading toward the head of the dino-dragon.

_WHAM!_

_POW!_

_KRACK!_

_BLAM!_

_SMACK!_

Shadow Queen's eyes widen in shock as she watched her five puppets fall in a near simultaneous ring around Samus, their unmoving bodies a tell-tale sign of their defeat.

"She took them each down with one hit…how is that possible?" The Shadow Queen wondered, "What is this power that radiates from her body? I never felt power like that when I possessed Peach. When did that princess acquire such strength? Or was it always there? Was it this very strength that made it so hard for me to control the princess?"

Stepping over her fallen adversaries, Samus slowly made her way toward Shadow Queen, her movements weighed down by the amount of energy discharging from her body. The glare, the piercing glare of Peach's cerulean blue eyes into blood red of the Shadow Queen's, annoyed the Shadow Queen to no end. Such defiance Samus showed, walking toward the Shadow Queen in such a manner. She should have been bowing in her mere presence, but the insolent woman dared to confront her as if they were **equals** and they surely were not! Samus would pay dearly for this blasphemy if Shadow Queen had any say.

"I will drag you into the darkness." The Shadow Queen seethed, returning Samus' glare with equal passion

Samus flinched slight and came to a stop upon hearing that phrase. It was so…familiar. Thinking back to a particular night the answer came to her like a hammer to the back of the head.

"It was you." Samus snarled

"Hmm? What are you going on about fool?" The Shadow Queen demanded

"The nightmares…Ridley, it was you, you were that woman I saw in the blast! (Check the ending of the fourth chapter of Chronicles to get the reference)" she barked, "What were you doing in my head!?"

"_Fuwhahahahahahahaha._" She cackled, "So you've realized." She said, a grin forming on her face, "Yes, it was I. I invaded the land of dreams and plagued you with nightmarish fantasies. I hope I did a good job." She chortled

Samus knuckles cracked as she clenched her fists even tighter.

"Why?" was all Samus managed to get out, afraid of what he mouth might betray

"Simple…to break you." The Shadow Queen said, "A fighter can be hurt in mind, body, and _heart_. I targeted your heart, your confidence. I wanted to break your very reason for being. And I would have gotten away with it too had it not been for those meddling Smashers."

Someplace, somewhere, Scooby Doo and the gang sneezed.

"Well Shadow Peach, I'm gonna break you too." She said, "I'll just happen to target the body." Samus said, continuing her walk toward Shadow Queen

"Fry!" Shadow Queen shouted, her eyes glowing bright red

Black thunder cackled and shot from the sky, descending upon Samus with a single-minded fury that few had the privilege to witness. Samus' figure was completely obscured by the blast that blew turf into the air and cackled madly as if it were some crazed sentient being. However, as the corrupt electricity calmed down…

"What…how!?" she shrieked, gaping at the condition of her opponent

The blast had barely done anything to the occupant of Peach's body. In fact it only seemed to anger Samus further. There was barely a scratch on her and the rampant dark energy that still encased her was blown away as her own, emotion powers increased in their rage.

"_Freeze!_" The Shadow Queen rasped, letting the corrupt cold flow toward Samus

Samus' steps began to slow as the cold took hold, ice forming about her legs and traveling up her body until her entire being was encased in the black ice. But through it all Samus still retained her look of rage, rage that was directed solely toward Shadow Queen.

"That look of defiance is still there!" Shadow Queen growled, "But it doesn't matter now. I'll let her lose consciousness and take her body then."

As wisp of heat escaped the confines of Samus' icy prison, Shadow Queen raised a delicate eyebrow at this strange occurrence.

_FAAAWWWOOOOSSSHHHH!_

In a blaze of glory (pardon the pun) the dark ice that encased Samus was blown off in a brilliant display of heat and fire. Having evaporated the wicked ice to nothing more than vapor, Samus continued her march, without obstruction.

Shadow Queen refused the acknowledge that she could feel fear toward the advancing Smasher, letting her own rage take hold as her hands ignited with dark flames.

"**Burn!**" she roared, lighting Samus up in a dark inferno

The nefarious flames engulfed the blonde powerhouse, ripping at the field with such ferocity that it would be a miracle if Samus survived, let alone could continue fighting. But the concept of Samus dying hadn't dawned on the Shadow Queen because for the moment, she was more interested in having Samus feel unrivaled pain.

_FUWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!!!_

Her laugh echoed across the stadium. It was such deep, malicious laughter that it was able to jar Peach from her stupor. Samus' suit, though still giving valid warnings about its condition, seemed to be out of the red for the time being, allowing Peach movement and visuals. She saw her possessed comrades, laid out on the ground as if they were asleep. She saw the bonfire of dark flames roar like a hungry beast in the middle of the field, its dark light illuminating the night sky. She saw the Shadow Queen in pure ecstasy over something, for her laughter was high and piercing. However, she didn't see her body…or more to the point, Samus.

"Please don't let Samus be in that insanity." Peach prayed, making her way toward Shadow Queen

Shadow Queen was so giddy with excitement she increased the intensity of the flames, letting them reach within inches before her. Then she noticed Peach.

"Ah, Peach, come to join your fellow Smasher?" Shadow Peach inquired, "If you do not surrender then I will be forced to annihilate you as I did her."

Peach gasped before a feeling of hate washed over her.

"Monster." She growled, holding up her arm cannon

"No, demon, the Demon of the Shadows." The Shadow Queen corrected, flames blazing in her hands

However, before Shadow Queen and Peach could go at it, they were interrupted by a not so dead third fighter.

"Huh?" muttered Shadow Queen, catching slight of a figure within the dark flames

A hand shot out from the flames, wrapping itself around Shadow Queens arm and holding tight.

"No…it's not possible!" she shrieked, realizing just what was emerging from the blaze, "You should be cinders now! You can't defy me!"

"I have a problem with authority." Samus replied, stepping from the flames, "Just go ask my employers."

"You don't have power over me!" she barked, "You are nothing!"

"Well then, if I'm nothing then this won't hurt a bit, will it?" Samus said, pulling back her arm and clenching her fist

The blaze around the blonde intensified to its max as she clenched her fist to the point of bleeding, but the switched Smasher ignored the pain in her right hand, focusing all her attention toward the dark copy of the body she was currently residing in.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Shadow Queen gasped loudly as Samus' fist closed in on her face

_**POW!**_

Some say when you take a blow to the face you see stars. Others say you see a lot of flashes. And still others say that for a moment the world goes white. Shadow Queen experienced none of the above. One moment she was screaming as she saw a blazing fist fly toward her the next she was in the air, feeling strangely lightheaded. She never felt the impact, for reasons that escaped her but she knew she had been hit and from the distance she was traveling she had been hit hard!

"_Whoa._" Peach squeaked

Shadow Peach flew, much like a football and ironically enough passed through the goalpost downfield, the duffle bag slipping from her grip as she landed, bouncing once before coming to rest.

"Ha…ha…ha…ha…ha…ha…" Samus' breathing was deep and heavy, having over-exhorted herself

The nightgown she was wearing was in shambles, barely able to stay on her heaving frame. She was shaking furiously from her fatigue and her world was fading in and out.

"I hope that did it." She murmured before falling to her knees, "'Cause I'm done."

The immense power that had been pulsating from her being had subsided and now she was almost completely drained of energy, her head held low for she had no power to keep it up. Peach broke out of her stupor and ran toward Samus to try and aid her fallen comrade.

"Samus are you...?"

"Don't ask me if I'm okay 'cause it's obvious I'm not." Samus told her

"Sarcastic to the end, huh?" asked Peach

"Would you have it any other way?" She murmured

Peach couldn't help but smirk.

"Come on, let me help you up."

"Wait." Samus said, stopping her, "We're not done yet. Get those plushies before the others wake up or we're done for."

"Right."

Peach jogged over to the discarded duffle bag and scooped it up.

"Weird, wasn't this thing closed?" she inquired, but quickly dismissed it as the safety of her friends was more important, "You guys okay in there?" she asked

"The hell I am!" barked Bowser, "I'm in a freaking duffle bag, and I'm _puny!_ I don't do puny!"

"He's fine." Replied Mewtwo calmly, "And so am I, though I do wish to return to my body now!" He barked

"Yoshi, yosh." Yoshi said, agreeing with the psychic cat

"Pika!" came the chirp of Pikachu

"Wait a second…where's Young Link?" Peach asked, failing to find him within the duffle bag."

"Looking…(cough)…for **this**." A venomous voice replied

Rising to her feet a batted Shadow Queen held in her gloved hand a small plushy that seemed in dire distress.

"Help!" the small plushy squeaked

Peach began to run toward Shadow Queen but when the demon of shadows squeezed the small plushy, resulting in Young Link crying out in pain, Peach stopped her advancement.

"Well then…heh…" Shadow Peach cackled, "We seem to have an understanding now."

The Shadow Queen's world was spinning and she was having trouble keeping herself steady, but she still wore a grin of confidence on her face for she still had control of at least one of the Smashers.

"I'll kill him if you don't surrender." She said, and to prove her point she squeezed Young Link again

"_Yaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!_"

"Why you…" Peach growled

"Not another step." The Shadow Queen said, "Now, bow to me."

Peach hesitated.

"BOW!" she barked, squeezing Young Link again and eliciting a piercing wail

With a defeated sigh Peach bent down to one knee and bowed her head in recognition to Shadow Queen, though it was one of the hardest things she ever had to do.

"_Fuwhahahahahahaha!!_" she cackled, walking over to Peach, "You're pathetic." She said, "One squeeze and you're on your knees." She scoffed, "Now for your soul."

_Swoosh!_

Something metallic spun through the air, nearly taking Shadow Queen's head off, though it did do a nice job of distracting her from her objective. Not to look a gift horse in the mouth Peach lunged for Shadow Queen before she could figure out what was going on. Peach pulled back her arm cannon, her fist clenching on the inside before she launched it forward in forceful, if not very accurate, punch. She had been aiming for the face, but her uncoordinated charge caused her punch to travel south, toward Shadow Queen's gut where it connected with a kidney.

_Ka-pow!_

"Gaaaaaaaaaa…" gasped Shadow Queen, a horrible pain shooting through her abdomen

Shadow Queen lost breath as the air was knocked out of her and on instinct her hands wrapped around her belly as she doubled over in pain. The Young Link plushy fell from her grip and Peach was quick to snatch it up and dash over to the duffle bag to safely place him inside.

"I'll…" Shadow Queen managed to rasp, "…kill…you…(cough)…"

Her hand went to her mouth on reflex as she was hit with a coughing fit. When it died down and she felt a strange dampness on her gloved hand she looked, and the image she saw brought terror to her eyes.

"Blo-blo-blood!" she shrieked, her mind reeling, "But this is impossible. I'm the Queen of Shadows, I don't bleed! Does this mean I've…lost my demonic powers? Is this why these fools have damaged me so throughly with only two blows…NO! I haven't lost yet!" she told herself, trying to rise to her feet "This is just a mere set back. I will make a retreat, for now, and when I return I'll crush them utterly."

Looking up at Peach, who was trying to calm her plushy friends down, Shadow Queen sneered at her, wishing all sorts of different and rather painful fates upon the switched Smasher, but knowing she didn't have the power, nor the advantage at the moment.

"Do not think this is over." She said, gaining Peach's attention, "Neither of you." She said, referring to Samus who at the moment was in a state of semi-consciousness, "You've only proved to stir my ire and when I return I will pay you back for this humiliation a thousand-fold!" she yelled, a dark pool forming below her, "I **will** drag you into the shadows." She said as the pool absorbed her, her final echoing words a shrilled laughter

_FUWHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!_

Shadow Queen's departure left Peach with a bad taste in her mouth. It was obvious that this wasn't the last time they'd see the deranged demon, but what really frightened Peach is that she didn't know what the Shadow Queen would pull next. The sky was the limit for a demon that had lived for over a thousand years. But right now wasn't the time to think about such things, she had to go see how badly Samus was hurt.

"Samus…Samus?" she called after running up to her, "How are you."

Samus didn't reply. Whether it was because she couldn't or didn't want to, was still a mystery. Meanwhile, high in the sky, a strange being was watching the Smashers with intrigue.

"Heh, heh, heh…they did better than I thought." The being thought, "They could have done a little better but I'll blame circumstances for now." The figure said, "I guess it would be best to return their souls to their bodies now."

Then with a snap of a finger an amazing event took place…though it appeared as if the only thing that happened was that the Smashers fell unconscious.

* * *

"Ugh…man, I feel like crap." Muttered a deep, gruff voice 

Opening his eyes the barer of the voice noticed two things off the bat. One, he had a horrible headache for some reason, and two, he was no longer as soft as cotton. This could mean only one thing.

"I'm back baby!" he cheered, jumping up to his full, towering height, "The King of the Koopas, the Terrible Lizard of Mushroom Kingdom, the Unstoppable Powerhouse of…"

"We get it Bowser." Replied a much calmer voice, "Do us all a favor and keep quiet."

"Shove it feline." Barked Bowser, "I know you're happy as hell to be back in that scrawny body of yours."

"One, I am not scrawny, I simply don't believe in oversized muscular strength to win my battles and two, I _am_ quite happy to have been returned to my body."

"Pika!" squealed Pikachu, firing a bolt of electricity high in the air; just for the rush it gave him, a rush he had been without for a while

"Yoshi." Yoshi nodded

"Hey…where's Samus and Peach?" Asked Young Link

"Over here." A voice said

The Smashers turned to the voice and observed the sight before them. There stood the two blondes, though the Smashers couldn't tell if they were back where they belonged or not, but it was apparent that Peach's body looked as if it had been through hell and back while the body of Samus' seemed a lot better off. Peach's body was slumped over the shoulder of Samus' body who was easily supporting the former's weight.

"Hey, are ya'll back to normal or not?" Bowser asked

Lifting off the Varia Suit helmet a blue-eyed blonde acknowledged the spiked Koopa.

"What do you think, turtle-breath?" replied the voice of the blonde bounty hunter

"She's back…" he groaned, "And that's _**tortoise-breath!**_"

"Never mind that, help me with Peach, she's out of it." Samus replied, walking over to the group

"What happened to her?" Young Link asked

"It's my fault." Samus replied, "I pushed her body a tad farther than it can handle. I just hope I didn't cause any irreversible damage to her."

"A moment please." Mewtwo replied, waving his hand in front of the two

Moments later, the wounds that adorned Peach were healed as if they were never there in the first place.

"The damage was not as atrocious as it may have appeared." Mewtwo replied, "She simple took more damage than her body is accustomed too. A some rest and she should be fine."

"Good." Replied Samus, looking about the worn torn stadium, hoping that there was nothing left that would need her attention "Let's get out of here." She proclaimed

"Would it really be wise to simply leave without investigation?" Mewtwo inquired, "Though Shadow Peach may be defeated for the moment, questions still remain. How exactly were we returned to our bodies? I do not believe that it was through the defeat of Shadow Peach, though that is a possibility. However, it not, was there someone watching the chaos from above. Are they friend or foe. Were they manipulating the events to their liking?"

These questions rang true and forced the Smashers into deep thought, all except for one who didn't care at the moment.

"So what?" replied Samus, "Who cares?"

"Hmm?" murmured Mewtwo

Samus was the last person Mewtwo would expect to denounce the situation so quickly. He more so thought that Bowser would probably take off without giving much thought on the matter, but Samus?

"Look. These are all fine things to think over, but for right now I don't care. I'm tired, Peach is done, and I don't think that anyone here really wants to investigate just what happened. Let's count ourselves lucky and figure this mess out some other day."

If Mewtwo had eyebrows he would have raised them, so instead he gave the armor-clad Smasher an odd look.

"Very well." he replied

Though he may have wanted to discover the reason behind the return to their bodies, Mewtwo couldn't argue with the fact that he was tired and wished to rest. Putting the pieces together could wait to another day.

* * *

As the trials of the last night disappeared with the darkness, the next day for the Smashers was bright and sunny and they decided to spend that day outside in the bright light and cool breeze of the day. With an entire field to do with as you pleased the Smashers didn't even need to leave the Smash Brother property to enjoy the day. At the moment they were hanging around the Smash Fountain (oh, what an ingenious name!) located in the middle of Smash Park, watching the captivating display of water shooting from the fountain. 

"Ah! What a beautiful day!" squealed the ever joyous voice of Princess Peach

"Yippee." Muttered Samus Aran, her reply lacking the same enthusiasm as Peach

"Oh Samus." Peach groaned, "Why do you have to be such a downer? I bet the others agree with me, right?" Peach asked

"This day is just like any other day that is sunny." Mewtwo replied, "No need to get overly excited over it."

Peach glared at the floating cat, her hand caressing the handle of her golf club hidden beneath her dress. However, instead of unleashing her fury on the meditating feline she decided to direct her question to Smashers that would more likely share her view.

"Well, Pikachu agrees with me? It's this a day to simply die for?"

Pikachu didn't reply. However it was not because he was being rude or didn't agree with Peach. It was because he was asleep.

"Pi…pi…pi…pi…" he murmured in his sleep

"Strike two." Muttered Samus, a small smirk making its way on her face

This time the delicate fingers of Peach were gripping her frying pan, but she kept her anger in check and yet again directed her attention to another Smasher, this time Young Link. He wasn't asleep and she was sure **he'd** agree with her.

"What do you think Young Link?" she asked her enthusiasm slipping, "And choose you answer _very_ carefully."

"And there's the threat." Murmured Samus, "Some princess."

Peach ignored her and gave Young Link the sweetest of smiles. But like all sweets this smile had the potential for cavities, or in Young Link's case, lost teeth.

"Well…" he began, not sure how to answer this question

In his honest opinion he though the day was okay. Nothing to get excited about, but still a good day. But if he said that he was sure he'd be cracked upside the head with one of Peach's hidden weapons. It was not so much that Peach wanted her way it was just that she didn't want Samus to have one up on her and Young Link was her crutch, and he knew it.

"What do I do?" he wondered, until he suddenly came up with a brilliant solution, "Peach, I think this day is a good as you make it." He replied, "I could never imagine how to make this day better than how you can." He told her

Peach thought about that for a moment and then smiled.

"You're right Young Link." She told him, "It doesn't matter what Samus thinks. If I think this day is great then this day is great!" she cheered

Young Link breathed a sigh of relief and quickly took a seat besides Bowser, hoping to use the Koopa King as a barrier incase any other questions were thrown in his general direction.

"You're right Peach." Replied Samus, "It doesn't matter what you think. If I think you're a couple I.Q. points lower than standard, then you are a couple of I.Q. points lower than standard."

"Hey!" yelled Peach, her anger taking hold

However, instead of going off the handle Peach decided to fight fire with fire, or in this contest, fight sarcastic comment with sarcastic comment.

"Samus...you know, I was wondering if I should invite you to the public baths in the city, but the baths aren't co-ed." Peach replied

It took the others a moment to figure out what Peach meant. When they did the looks on their faces, especially Samus' face brought Peach unparralled joy.

"Oh...zing." murmured Bowser

"This won't be good." Young Link muttered

"Ugh...humans." muttered Mewtwo

"Yoshi." muttered Yoshi

Pikachu snored on, oblivious to the bomb that was about to go off.

"Peach..." growled Samus, but the princess didn't give the bounty hunter the opportunity to counter

"But seriously, it's not my fault that some people mistaken your gender. I mean, can yo blame then?" she asked, "At best you're a tomboy...emphasis on _boy_."

"Well it's better than being some ditzy airhead!" Samus barked, losing her cool

"Hey, I'm not ditzy or an airhead!" Peach shot back

"Could have fool me."

"Well why don't I prove it?" Peach growled, glaring at Samus

"Go right ahead." Samus retorted, equalling Peach in glaring

"Should we stop them?" Young Link asked, watching as the two blondes glared at one another

"I'm not getting in between _that_." replied Bowser, "I may be the strongest one here, but I'm not stupid."

"Do not worry so much about it. The two are not truly angry with one another." Mewtwo said, "There is something deeper to this squabbling, even if it is pointless."

Young Link raised an eyebrow to this, confused at Mewtwo's response, but intrigued with what he was getting at. Maybe he'd stay around and see what went down. But he still thought that girls were the weirdest.

* * *

And there we go. The end of Switched. Hope you like. And get ready for the next batch of Chronicles. 


	7. Influence Part 1

This is the seventh chapter of Chronicles, and the first chapter of its newest story, "Influence".

* * *

Many people that lived in Smash Central thought that all the Smashers did was spend their time coming up with new ways to cause trouble. Those people were unquestionably correct. Though every once in a while the Smashers trained with one another to try and come up with new moves to use on one another. Not really competitive, given the nature of their sport, but the Smashers never really cared for logic (and at times, _psychics_).

As of right now, two Smashers in particular were training in Smash Park, the large field that surrounded the mansion. Zelda, the esteemed princess of Hyrule was helping Nana, the hammer-wielding mountain climber of the frozen wastelands out with a move she had been working on

"Ready Nana?" asked the princess

The small Inuit child nodded her head vigorously, assuring Zelda of her preparedness.

"Okay then…" Zelda replied, "Let's see what you can do." She said, her hands beginning to glow

"Right." Nana chirped, taking a huge breath, "Weather Cast: Great White Squall!" she roared in her head before breathing out, releasing an immense wave of cold air that literally froze everything in its path

Zelda however looked unperturbed by the advancing airstream, letting the attack completely envelope her when it finally reached her.

"Yes!" Cheered Nana as the last of her squall left her throat, "I think I got her!" she squealed

"Don't get too excited Nana." Replied a voice from within the storm

After the wind had died down it was revealed that Zelda stood unharmed and the immediate area around her was unfrozen, showing by some ingenuity of some sorts that she had deflected the attack.

"What!?" gasped Nana, stunned at her attack's ineffectiveness, "How'd you do that?" she asked

"Simple." Replied Zelda, going into explanation, "Though powerful, that attack is far too slow given its name and it's much too wasteful. The attack lost much of its power before it even reached _me_" she clarified, sweeping her hand in front of her to show Nana the effectiveness of her move

As Zelda had pointed out, the most devastation caused by the attack was focused around Nana, the thick ice becoming thinner as it lead to Zelda.

"Oh…" Nana murmured, feeling downcast

"Don't feel down Nana." Zelda told her, walking over to the child

As Zelda approached her feet began to glow and the glowing caused the frozen terrain to melt, the frozen plant life springing back to life almost instantly.

"You've just got to work on it some more." Zelda replied, "No skill or ability is mastered immediately." She said, "If that was the case there'd be no point in even training. If you continue to work on it then you'll turn that attack into something dangerous in no time." She assured her

Though still feeling somewhat down about her attack's ineptness, a smile still formed on the face of the hooded girl at the kind words of Zelda.

"You're right." Replied Nana, "I'll work on it. And then, nobody will be able to stop me! I'll be invincible!"

"Yeah…" Zelda said, slightly frightened by her words, "By the way, it looks as if you've grown since the last time I saw you." She replied

After the last tournament the Smashers hadn't been around the mansion as often as they usually were, so after a few months Zelda was surprised that Nana had grown so much.

"You're almost as tall as Ness." She mentioned,

"Heh…" Nana giggled, "Brother's taller though." She replied

"Speaking of which, where is your brother?" Zelda asked

It was a perplexing thing indeed for the princess. Since the day she met the twin mountain-climbers she had almost never seen them apart, albeit the most private of times. Seeing just Nana here, without her brother, was a strange occurrence indeed.

"Yeah, where _is_ your bro?" asked Ness, having returned from his jaunt with Kirby and Jigglypuff

The trio had gone to a restaurant to get something to eat. To many this would be a harmless outing, but to the Smashers this was open to debate.

"Hey guys, you're back." Zelda proclaimed, "Did you enjoy lunch?"

"We would have had it not been for Kirby." Ness replied

"I said I was sorry." Replied the pink puffball

"What happened?" Zelda asked stoically

"We got kicked out." Ness told her

Zelda sighed, pretty much determining the reason why but feeling obligated to ask anyway.

"How?"

"Those people said I could eat until I can't anymore." Kirby quipped, "Not my fault they ran out of food."

"It's an "All-You-Can-Eat buffet, not an "Eat-It-All buffet." Ness challenged

"What's the difference?"

"They don't expect you to have a bottomless pit of a belly."

Kirby snorted, which was an amazing feet for the likes of him since he had no nose to speak of.

"Well, I guess we can list that restaurant under the, "Smashers can never come here" list."

Currently there were 22 restaurants listed. And that wasn't even including small fast-food restaurant or food stands.

"That okay." Replied Jigglypuff, comforting the Star Warrior, "Jigglypuff blow place up later." She told him

"You will not!" barked Zelda, "Remember what happened the last time!?"

Jigglypuff seemed to be in thought and eventually answered Zelda's accusation.

"No."

"Well I do." Muttered Zelda, not wanting to relive that taxing day, "No revenge plans." She directed, "And that goes for you too Ness and Kirby." She said scolded

"But…"

"No."

"Jiggly…" muttered Jigglypuff in defeated

"Now then…where was I?" Zelda pondered

"Asking about Nana's brother and advancing the plot of the story." Kirby replied

"Yeah…wait, what?"

"Nothing."

"Er…anyway, where is Popo?" Zelda asked, thus advancing the plot of the story

"He's at the village."

"Village?" Zelda, Jigglypuff, Kirby, and Ness questioned

"Yeah, Hiehie Village." She replied, "Or Chilly Village."

"I thought ya'll live by yourselves." Ness asked

"We do, but we go to the village every now and again to get supplies and talk to the elders." She replied

"So is that what Popo's doing?" Zelda asked

"Yeah." Nana replied, "He's in discussion with them right now."

"And why aren't you there with him?" Kirby asked

"I'm not sure, but the elders said this was a private matter and only Popo could go."

"So private that they wouldn't even allow his own sister to participate?" Zelda mused, "Just what could this all be about?"

Nana shrugged.

"I don't know, but I'm about to head back now cause the elders said to wait two days." She informed, "I waited at home but it was so lonely without Popo so I decided to come to the mansion."

"Can Jigglypuff come?" Jigglypuff asked

Discovering that the Ice Climbers didn't live in some vast wasteland of ice intrigued the small pudding pokemon and now she had to see what was up.

"Well…I guess." Nana said, a little unsure, "I mean, we've never _actually_ brought outsiders to the village before, but the people there are nice so it probably won't be a big deal." She replied

"If that's the case I'm coming too!" Ness announced, the prospect of meeting more people like the Ice Climbers too good to pass up

"I want to come!" Kirby thought, wondering what food they had at their village

"Okay…" Nana replied, smiling sheepishly, wondering if it would really be okay to bring them

"I can not let you three go unsupervised." Zelda said, eyeing all three, "I shall accompany you and make sure you all stay out of trouble."

"Who says we're going to get into trouble?" Ness asked, "We're responsible."

"That is dependant on who you're asking." They heard a voice say

Turning, the four saw Marth making his way toward them with DK and Falco at his sides. Ness stuck his tongue out at him. Marth simply chuckled slightly and walked over to Zelda, taking her hand to his, bending down and kissing it as gentlemanly as possible. There was nothing romantic about the gesture or nothing that could insinuate that conclusion; that is just how Marth greeted all women. Young, old, big, small, it didn't matter. Marth's upbringing taught him to be very respectable to the opposite sex.

"My Lady." He said as he rose

"Marth, DK, Falco." She replied, "How's it going?"

DK grunted happily.

"Hn." Muttered Falco, his usual greeting

"Come on Zelda, we'll be fine." Whined Ness, "I mean, what could happen."

"Is that a trick question?" she asked mockingly, "I am coming, no excuses."

"Fine." Muttered Ness

"I will accompany you as well, it would only be my duty to accompany a princess to an unknown region." Marth replied

Jigglypuff, Kirby, and Ness groaned outwardly.

"Me too." Grunted DK, thoroughly interested in the snowy region that Nana and Popo called home

"What about you Falco. Will you be accompanying us as well?" Zelda asked

"Hn…" muttered Falco, "I guess. Better than laying around here."

"Great!" Zelda cheered happily, "Expanding one's knowledge of other places is the key to gaining experience and wisdom." She replied, "But since we are going to a place that is rather cold I do believe that we should dress the part." She said, and with that she waved her hand across the whole group

In moments the original clothes of the Smashers morphed to more winter-appropriate attire. For Zelda, a large cloak appeared on her, covering her entire body in a heavy material designed to retain warmth while he normal shoes became boot-like.

Before Ness knew what hit him, his normal shirt and shorts became a hooded jacket and heavy pants. His once red and white sneakers becoming red and white snow boots.

The normal armor that adorned Marth's features became padded for added warmth, and a pair of blue earmuffs and gloves, completing the change of clothes.

Without much change to his features, the only thing about Falco's winter wear was that was more padded than his original attire, with longer sleeves for his jacket.

For the puffballs of the group, small hats now became features for them. A large stocking cap now made residence on Kirby's head, not unlike the cap he donned in Sleep Kirby mode. So big in fact that if Kirby wanted to he could actually hide in the hat. Meanwhile, Jigglypuff was granted a green ear-warmer that fitted around her head snuggly, granting her warmth but not taking away from the mobility of the balloon pokemon.

Last, but by no means least, the primate of the jungles got a clothes change as well (even if it wasn't really needed, hell, he has _fur_ for heavens sake!). DK's tie morphed into a scarf with the prominent "DK" still tattooed upon it, serving as his obvious identification.

"Is everyone ready?" she asked

A chorus of the word 'yes' was given, though one 'no' was heard among the group, directing Zelda's attention to Nana.

"Help." Nana murmured

It would have seemed that Zelda's magical influence had reached the pink Ice Climber as well, adding to the already padded parka that the young girl wore, making her look as if she were hiding a few hundred pounds underneath her normal attire, making it impossible for Nana to move.

"Whoops…" Zelda gasped, shocked at her ineptness, "I suppose I let a little too much magic go." She replied

* * *

Nesh, the home of the Ice Climbers. Though usually a bitter cold region, this time of year the land of Nesh was surprisingly warm. The need for proper attire was still a must, but the risk of freezing your tail off was not an immediately threat. It was simply a little cool so the Smashers were thankful that Zelda thought ahead and granted them winter clothing. 

"It's pretty cold out here." Ness stated, a statement that granted him a disgruntled grunt from Falco

"Well of course it is." Muttered Falco, "Hell, why do you think we're wearing these things?" He said

"Falco, be nice. It was only an observation." Zelda replied

"A '_duh_' observation." He muttered

"_Falco…_"

"Hn…"

While Zelda and Falco had their little spat, Marth and DK watched in unbridled amusement over Jigglypuff and the way she fawned over Kirby, who was trying his best to keep the overzealous puffball away without being too mean about it.

"Jigglypuff…could ya let go of my arm…I'm losing feeling." He replied flatly

"But so cold." Jigglypuff replied, "Jigglypuff staying warm with Kirby." She told him

"Hmm…" Kirby thought, coming up with an idea moments later

Kirby opened his mouth and began to inhale. The moment the Smashers figured this out they jumped for cover, even Jigglypuff. Kirby was not one to be around when he was hungry, which was almost every waking moment of his existence. Snow made its way into the gullet of the blob and a bright light kicked up for a few moments. When the light died down Kirby was revealed to have undergone a transformation. Now sporting a hat that seemed to have ice shards protruding from the top Kirby was now the very thing that surrounded him, Ice Kirby.

"Ohh!" squealed Jigglypuff; in awe of the way his hat reflected the bright sunlight, a multihued of different colors bouncing along the near flawless design of the ice shards

She lounged at him, ready to latch on like a parasite and never let go, but the moment she did a fierce coldness ran through her body.

"Heh." Chuckled Kirby, though not loud enough for Jigglypuff to hear

Try as she might she just couldn't stay attached to him. He was just too cold…literally. His body temp had plummeted in his Ice Kirby form, making it nigh impossible to stay near him for too long.

"Jiggly!" cried Jigglypuff, jumping toward DK in a desperate bid to take warm

Landing on the back of the large primate Jigglypuff felt an immediate, and welcome change in temp, DK's body being surprisingly warm.

"_Purin…_" she purred, reverting to her secondary pokemon language

"Now Kirby, that wasn't very nice." Zelda told him, her voice leaning toward a scolding manner

Kirby simply shrugged, which again was an amazing feet for him since he had no shoulders to speak off. Zelda simply sighed.

"So Nana, how exactly are we gonna get to your village?" Ness asked, "'Cause we've been walking for a while and I was just wondering if we were gonna keep walking?" he asked

"We're taking the train." She replied

This response granted her a few stares.

"What…haven't any of you been on a train?" she asked

"Uh…yeah…it's just…" Ness trailed off

He never knew that Nana had trains where she came from. Frankly he didn't know much about Nana or her brother simply for the reason that the topic never came up. It was odd after all this time they had been Smashers had this never come up, but now it had and Ness had to approach this question carefully or risk Nana thinking that he thought she was some primitive tribesperson. Unfortunately for him, Falco wasn't quite as subtle as Ness could be at times.

"Didn't think ya'll were that technologically advanced." He replied and Ness nearly tripped on his own two feet, "Seriously, would it have killed ya to mention this before we came?"

"Sorry, it never came up." She said, "But yeah, we're taking the train, and boy, is this train big!" she said happily

* * *

Nana wasn't kidding when she said that the train was _big_. The Smashers had found the train station not too far off from where they began their trek and it was large to say the least and filled with multiple different species of artic creatures. From penguins in vests and top hats to polar bears wearing sunglasses and Bermuda shorts and even seals with large clubs, the train station was a bustling train stop. But that wasn't even half as exciting as when the train arrived. Though not a highly advanced train like what many of the Smashers were expecting or such, this train was rather impressive to say the least. Wider than most, the tracks were spread wide along their path. This meant that the train was much more stable at straight-forward high speeds, but it also meant that it would probably wouldn't be good at high speed turns, given the weight distribution. Luckily, there weren't many turns between here and Nana's village. So the train was not only _big_ but it was also _fast!_

"Wow." Was all Ness could say at the sight

"All aboard!" yelled the stagecoach, a large walrus with huge tusks

The patrons scrambled aboard, nearly toppling the Smashers over as they pushed their way in. Luckily, the inside of the train was spacious, the passengers quickly spreading out and giving the Smashers room to breath.

"Does that always happen?" Marth asked Nana

"You should see when it's busy." She replied

"Don't we need tickets to ride a train?" Ness asked

"Not really, but you do need a ticket to get a seat on this train. They fill up fast." Nana replied

"Oh…" murmured Ness, "We got no tickets so we got no seats." He said

"Not necessarily." Replied Nana, walking down toward the end of the train car, "Hello?" she called up to a reindeer

"Hmm…what do you wa…" he began, before he recognized who he was speaking to, "Why Lady Nana, is that you!?" he gasped in surprised, "It is you!"

"Hello Griff." She replied, "How are you?"

"Fine, fine, but I should be the one asking how you are? I haven't seen you in quite some time."

"I'm fine." She replied

"What are you doing here on the train today Lady Nana?" he asked

"I'm bringing my friends to the village and I was hoping we could get some seats." She asked

"Why of course, of course, anything for Lady Nana!" he proclaimed, "Please, walk this way." Griff said, taking long strides out of the train car and into the next

As Nana followed the others simply shrugged their shoulders and follow; Ness, Jigglypuff, and Kirby mimicking Griff near exactly. The group was lead down three cars before finally coming to a near empty one. It was a relief to be rid of the constant noise and confusion from the other cars; the only patrons of this particular car being what seemed to be an old snow wolf couple.

"Wow…" Jigglypuff, Ness, and Kirby gasped, looking about the sight before them

Other than being relatively quiet and empty, the seats of the car looked rather comfortable, with a gorgeous view of the passing scenery outside. There also seemed to be a small buffet on one side, something that Kirby took full interest in.

"_Fooooooooooooooooood!_"

Not even the dogs of hell could have kept Kirby away from that table.

"I say Bridget, is that Lady Nana?" asked the male of the couple

"I do believe so Robert." The female replied, "Lady Nana, do you remember us?" she asked

Nana seemed to be in thought but couldn't come up with an answer.

"Probably not my dear, she was only a young-in when we first met." Robert replied, "Why, we were there the day you were born my Lady."

"Hold up!" Falco barked, "What's with all this 'My Lady' and 'Lady Nana' business!" he demanded

"Hmm…you don't know my avian friend?" asked Robert, "Well to put it simply Nana and her brother are the heirs to Hiehie Village." He replied

"Heirs!?" everyone exclaimed, casting a perplexed glare toward Nana

"Ha ha…" Nana chuckled sheepishly, trying to lighten the mood a little, "Sorry…it never came up." She replied

"I see…" mumbled Marth, before a slight smirk crossed his face, "Well let me apologize my Lady." He said, before taking the young girl's hand and kissing it properly, "I hope this makes up for the times of my rude behavior for not addressing you so."

"That's okay." She replied, "I never really liked the title. I'm still plain old Nana." She told him

"Very well."

"Okay, so what exactly do you mean she's the heir to her village?" asked Ness, "What's this mean?"

"Well…" Nana mumbled, looking toward the floor, "The thing is that…" she trailed off

"Would it be okay if I told the story of your birth?" asked Robert

Nana nodded and sat down. This would take a while.

"Gather round young ones and listen well to this story." Robert replied, "I suppose it would be proper to begin this story with Lady Nana's parents." He said, "It all began one day…"

"Wait, wait!" Ness cried out, before Robert could begin

"What is it young one?" he asked

"Well, if we're going into a flashback let me get prepared for the waviness."

"My flashbacks are more of a fade-in, fade-out sort of thing." Robert told him

"Oh."

"Now then, where was I…?"

_One day…_

_In Hiehie Village there was a man, of strong build and character. Years of climbing, and years of experience had molded this man into what one would say the highest of men. However he was not happy for he lacked what all men aim for in life; the love of another beyond all else._

"In other words, he wanted a wife."

_Damn it Bridget! I am telling this story!_

"Sorry dear, it just seemed like a good time to summarize." She chuckled, "I forgot how much you hate being interrupted when you're telling a story. Continue."

_Thank you dear. Ahem. As I was saying, the man, whose name held such dignity that few spoke it without feeling a well of awe, was in search of something._

"Dear, it was Douglass." She replied, "No need to over exempilfy the man."

_Bridget!_

"Sorry."

_AHEM! The man...ere...Douglass…he felt as if his life was half-full, the want for a life-long companion eating away at his heart. Though he knew that such selfish desires should be abolish, as a man he could not help what he yearned for the finer things in life. So he set out from his village to find himself a wife. His search was a strange journey though. Women from many villages embraced him, wanting him to take them as his own, yet not one of them satisfied him. Not that the man was picky mind you (though he did have his option on a few), it was simply that he could not find love among any of them, only the want to be with such a distinguished climber._

"_Yum…_" murmured Kirby in ecstasy as he ate, with no end in sight

"Dear me." Bridget gasped, "Does that young thing eat like that all the time?" she asked

"You have no idea." Falco muttered

_As such, his search seemed endless and fruitless. The young climber felt as if the heavens were teaching him a lesson by not letting him find love. He felt horrible for his self-interest and would have given up his hunt for a wife that very day had it not been for an unexpected occurrence while he took shelter in an inn. While coming for dinner he was served by his definition a snow goddess, though in all honesty it was simply the daughter of the inn keeper. She was but a plain woman, enjoying life as it was. Her dreams were to live a life that revolved around helping her father at the inn; marriage never entered her mind so it was quite a surprise when Douglass asked her for her hand in it._

"Aww…" Zelda cooed

"Bleh…" gagged Ness

_However, she declined, saying that she was but the simple daughter of a simple inn keeper and that there were plenty of far more prettier women he could choose. Yet, he stuck by his decision and asked again. Her father, more than ready to give his daughter away to a good man tried to persuade her that marrying Douglass would be a good idea, but she declined again. Determined to prove his love to her, Douglass proclaimed that he would climb the tallest mountain of the region and retrieve the fable Altude, a flower that could survive high altitudes. Such a prize would prove that his love could not be swayed, much like the flower itself. The woman, though not in love, could not help but feel concern for the man, begging him not to climb such a dangerous mountain. No man had returned from its rocky sides alive. Even Topies feared its dangerous slopes. But there was no fear in this man's heart. The very next day he went to climb the mountain to claim the flower and thus claim the heart of the beautiful woman._

"Seems like a lot work just for some girl." Falco commented

"Any man would be willing to go to any lengths for the one he loves." Replied Marth

"Still, it's pretty bothersome if you ask me."

"Falco, Falco. It would seem you have a lot to learn about the feminine species." Marth told him

"Don't give me that crap!" He barked, "I know enough about girls to know that trying to impress them is impossible."

_May I finish!?_

"Oh…go ahead." Replied Falco

_With strong vigor Douglass began to climb the treacherous mountain, his skills as a climber aiding him in his perilous journey. For a time the climb was rather effortless, and the man felt as if the rumors of how dangerous this mountain was were only speculation. However, a sudden storm had hit the mountain and before the climber realized what was going one he was lost. The cold, the darkness, the emptiness, all coming at him at once; his rigid fortitude was no match for such abysmal circumstances._

"What a horrible fate to befall such a man." Bridget murmured

"Did man die?" Jigglypuff asked

"If he did then Nana wouldn't be sitting here now would she?" Falco quipped

"Oh…"

_Climbing a rather precarious ledge the Douglass fell, presumably to his doom. With nothing to grab hold of and no way to slow his descent, the man fell helplessly down the mountain. As he fell the prominent images of his life flashed before him. His life before becoming a climber, the first mountain he ever successfully climb, the one's he loved more than anything, his enemies, everything, and finally, the love of his life._

"_I've screwed up. I am not the climber I thought I was." He told himself, "I am not the man I thought I was."_

_Seeing as death was inescapable he simple let go, ready to accept death and all that it was to bring him. Fortunately for the wayward man was saved by the very thing he longed for._

"Oh honey, can I tell the next part, please?" Bridget pleaded, giving her husband puppy dog eyes, which wasn't entirely hard since she was a _wolf_

_I suppose. Let me just get out of narrator mode._

Seconds later he was back to normal speech.

"Wow, I never realized just how hard it was to be in narrator mood. Italics are hard to keep up with." He said

"Yes dear, that is why I'll speak in bold."

"Think you can handle it?"

"No problem." She said, "Now then, let's begin."

**With speed and finesse of only the finest of climbers a figure appeared and rescued the man from certain demise. Cold and fatigue stopped Douglass from seeing just who it was that saved his life, but as he recalls it was something of an angel descending upon him to save his life.**

"**Beautiful…" he murmured before consciousness left him**

**When he awoke he found himself in familiar settings. In a soft bed in the inn from earlier, Douglass was recovering, with the tentative daughter of the inn keeper watching over him.**

"**You're awake!" she gasped in relief, nearly smothering him in a hug**

"**What…happened?" he asked her, "I remember falling and then being saved by an angel." He replied**

"**You…I found you some time after you made you ascent." She told him, "You were haggard and freezing and I carried you back to the inn. I suppose this 'angel' helped you survive your fall."**

"**Oh…"**

"**You should rest." The daughter replied, "You have narrowly escaped a visit with death and you are still at risk of getting very sick."  
**

"**Oh…but before I sleep, please, tell me your name?" he asked, "For when I awake I may never see you again."  
**

"**It is…Samantha." She replied**

**Three days went by before Douglass fully recovered and during that time he and Samantha spent every waking moment together. He apologized for his rash proclamation to sweep her off her feet but she thought none of it, thinking it was rather cute that a man would fall so head over heels for her. Though he relinquished his brash exclamation, he would not take back what he felt for Samantha, saying that his words were true.**

"**I cannot be that beautiful." She told him**

"**Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and as that beholder I see unparalleled beauty in you." He replied**

"What a beautiful line." Zelda murmured

"I know…but the one my husband told me the day he wanted to spend the rest of his life with me was even more beautiful." Bridget said

"Well I will admit took me some time to come up with it."

"And I'm glad you did." She said, snuggling up against her husband

As the two growled in bliss, Ness, Falco, and DK gagged while Zelda and Jigglypuff sighed heavenly. Kirby continued to stuff his face with Marth standing over him, sighing in disdain. Nana was simply staring out of the window absentmindedly. That was until she noticed something.

"Hmm?"

Looking out to the passing scenery the female of the Ice Climber duo noticed something odd. Coming along side the train there seemed to be a smaller, secondary train, which struck Nana as odd since she knew there was only one set of tracks. Upon closer inspection she discover that this much smaller train seemed to be moving without a track, more so a long truck as opposed to a train. Then she noticed something else, a few parka clad men climbing on top of the truck, bearing spear weapons and other such modified tools.

"Guys?" she called, gaining everyone's attention, "I think we have a problem." She said, taking hold of her hammer

* * *

Note: Nesh is an English dialect adjective meaning unusually susceptible to cold weather and there is no synonym for this use. And yes, though Nana didn't say much she is rather comfortable about speaking about her past. 


	8. Influence Part 2

This is the part of the story where the plot begins, but it doesn't go into detail as of what is going on. The reader will have to wait until next chapter for that.

* * *

It didn't take long for panic to erupt on the train to Hiehie Village as it seemed that it was being attacked by unknown assailants. Their reason and purpose behind the attack was unknown, but they seemed dog-determined to carry out whatever they had planned as they boarded the train and attacked the passengers. However, not all the bandits were aboard the train at the moment, more so they were atop the train while it breezed by the cold country side. To stand on a such a fast moving vehicle and keep balance was no easy feet, granting the bandits some level of skill. 

"Alright, ya'll know what ta do. Find da car and get da treasure!" barked a large man in a brown parka, carrying a large harpoon the length of two fully-grown average men

Around thirty or so individuals surrounded him, as they all stood atop the train, having already jumped from their mobile snow sled to the train. At his orders however all but five scrambled on board the train, leaving him and a small, diverse group of people around him, each with different colored parkas.

"So boss, what'll we do once we get the treasure?" asked a man in a light green parka, holding a four-foot long club in hand, "I mean we can't really sell it 'cause of what it can do and only the heirs can really use it, so..."

"Getting da treasure first is most important. Once we got dat we can find da heirs and force 'em to make it work." The large man said

"Well I guess getting the treasure will be easy, but getting the heirs will be the hard part." Replied a feminine voice in a red parka, brandishing a large hunting knife, twice the length of her arm

"They're just kids." The green parka wearing man stated, "How hard could it be to catch 'em?"

"They might be kids but I've heard they've climbed many mountains, including Great Condor Peak."

"No way!" yelled a third member of this group, wearing a gray parka and wielding a grappling hook with a frightfully looking claw on the end, "Only a few climbers have actually been able to climb that mountain, especially with the Great Condor flying high above! It's impossible for children to climb such slopes!"

"But they did, and even defeated the Great Condor." Replied the fourth member of the group

Much calmer than his more eccentric ally, this climber wore, oddly enough, a yellow parka that vastly contradicted with his more relaxed, if not deadpan behavior, while he held in his hands a two-handed ice pick.

"If they beat that thing then they're nothing to laugh at. But it'll be fun to fight them." Replied another female, donning an orange parka and carrying a lightweight ice hammer

"Enough of dat right now!" barked the leader, "We have ta first get dat treasure before we deal wid da heirs, go get going you slowpokes!" he ordered

"Right." They all said in unison before taking off into the train

"Now den, time to hava chat with da engineer." the leader said as he walked toward the locomotive

* * *

"What's going on now?" Falco asked, thoroughly annoyed with all the yelling he was hearing 

The answer to his question came in the form of Griff the Reindeer who in his hurry stumbled into the private car.

"Lady Nana, Bandits!" he yelled, trying to scramble to his feet, "On the train! Hurry, hide!" he yelled in his frantic state

"Bandits?" Zelda inquired

"They came from nowhere and now they are everywhere." he said, "I managed to get back here before they overran the other cars but they'll be hear in moments and you must get out of this car!" he yelled

"Why this car in particular?" Zelda asked, catching the tone in his voice as odd

""Mmm..." Griff mumbled, giving a unsure look to the Smashers

The reindeer wasn't so sure if he should tell them. The secret hidden away was far too valuable to just let anyone know. But as he thought about it, telling them didn't seem as bad, since it was obvious that the bandits hadn't come to simply steal from the passengers of the train.

"The train's transporting a very valuable item and that must be why these bandits have come. The contents of which have been kept secret from the general public to deter thieves." he said

"But the info was obviously leaked somehow." Falco commented

"Just what is it being transported?" Marth asked

"Well..." he began, but was cut off by yelling from the adjacent car, "They're coming, you must leave, now!"

"Calm yourself Griff." Zelda replied, walking toward the door

"What are you doing!?" he practically screeched, "They've got weapons and there's so many. You can't possibly be thinking about fighting them."

"I am." she said, "Griff, Robert, Bridget, stay here." she told them, "Everyone?" she called to the Smashers

"At your side." Marth replied proudly

"So we're beating up robbers, huh?" Ness asked, "Hey Kirby, we gotta fight!" he called to the food-stuffing puffball

"Food?"

"You'll get to eat after we're done." Ness replied

"Food?"

"Kirby, stop eating."

"Food?"

Ness had to think. Prying Kirby away from food was no easy task, but Ness knew Kirby's weakness.

"They came to steal the food Kirby and they don't want to share."

Kirby was out of the door so fast that it was a miracle he hadn't plowed the door down in his haste. Before the Smashers knew it they could already hear the battle cry of Kirby as he had at the despicable bandits.

"I wonder about him sometimes." Falco commented

"Are you coming?" Zelda asked

"Hn." mumbled Falco, "Better than standing around here all day and listen to some sappy flashback." He said

Zelda didn't need a response from the tie-wearing simian. With a grunt and a smile DK made his way toward one of the windows and managed to climb out. His reasons for climbing out of a speeding train were his own, but the Smashers didn't think much of it. He'd be fine.

"Well then I guess we should get going." Marth said

"Wait a sec, where's Nana?" Ness asked

Zelda turned just in time to see a spiked boot disappear outside a window.

"Where's she going?" Falco asked

"Had the same plan DK had I guess." Replied Ness

"Oh, I do hope Lady Nana is okay? I do believe these ruffians aboard the train may hurt her."

"She'll be fine." Falco replied, "Now can we get going before I decide to take a nap?"

"Such an impatient bird." Marth mumbled

"I heard that pretty boy."

"Boys, boys. Let's fight the enemy, not ourselves."

"As you wish Lady Zelda." Marth replied

"Whatever." muttered Falco

"Let's go!" cheered Ness, leading the way to battle

"Jigglypuff, could you be a dear and watch over Griff, Robert, and Bridget while we deal with this problem?" Zelda asked

Jigglypuff wasn't too keen on sitting by and letting her friends, especially Kirby, run off and fight. But even the small balloon of a pokemon knew that the three bystanders would be better off with her, than just simply locking the door, so she accepted.

"Okay."

"Thanks." Zelda said as she followed Ness, Marth, and Falco out of the door, locking it behind her

"You all seem so carefree about the situation?" Griff asked in disbelief, "Don't you realize what's going on?" he asked

"Yep." Jigglypuff replied, "It okay." she told him

Griff eyed her oddly and was about to say more when Bridget interrupted.

"Why don't we let these youngsters handle things?" she said, "I have a feeling things will turn out to be quite interesting."

* * *

Just after locking the door to the private cabin Zelda met with twenty-odd faces of what she deduced must have been the bandits. The patrons of the train were seated firmly in there seats, but it looked as if a few had put up a struggle, but the number of and more superior bandits had soundly dealt with any trouble-makers, which the Smashers were now classified as. 

"Hey, sit down!" barked one of the bandits, making his way toward Falco

Falco raised an eyebrow but didn't speak a word as the man made his way over to him, standing an inch higher than the humanoid bird-of-prey.

"Can't you hear!" the bandit yelled

Falco remained silent.

"I'll give ya one more chance, sit down!" he barked

"Could you shut up?" Falco finally declared

The easiness at which Falco had said that comment bothered the taller man and with a growl he pulled his fist back, ready to smash Falco with everything he had. Unfortunately, everything he had would barely faze the blue bird. Falco watched the fist barreling down on him, his sharp eyes following the moment to the 'T'. Just before it could connect he dodged out of the way, letting the fist sail pass him and in the same instant launched his own, far quicker and far stronger, punch.

"_Oof!_"

The bandit felt the wind get knocked out of him and stumbled back, his hands as his gut, trying to breath. Eventually he collapsed, writhing on the floor in pain, his fellow bandits looking on in disbelief. Falco inched his right foot forward until he got into stance, bringing up his fists and furrowing his eyes. He glared at his opponents, though in his eyes they barely qualified as that, and motioned them to bring it.

"Get them!" barked another bandit and then a storm of bandits made their way down the large train car

The first of the bandits to make it to the Smashers tried to smash Falco with a shovel. Why use a shovel as a weapon? The Smashers couldn't answer that, but it was a shovel no less. The attack failed however when Falco dodged and fired his fist at the man with precise aim. He toppled the shovel-wielding bandit. A machete swinging maniac came barreling down on the bird, and the blue aviator backed away, letting the swash-buckler of the group have a go.

Marth blocked with the speed and precision of a bullet, stopping the machete swinger cold. Even with the weapon's slightly heavier form the bandit didn't have the ability to push Marth's blade back. Hell, it barely budged! Marth flicked his wrist and threw the man off balance, making him drop his blade in the process. Before he could stand Marth's blade was at his throat, pinning him to the floor.

"How are you so strong?" the bandit asked, taken back at how easily he was dispatched

"It's not about strength." Marth replied calmly, though his fixed glare never left his face, "Skill was the victor here." he told him, "Now go, before my blade runs you through."

As Marth pulled away the man scrambled to his feet and back off, though it didn't seem as if his cohorts had the same level of common sense and five of them charged the cape wearing prince in an attempt to overwhelm him.

A myriad of different weapons descended upon Marth and the prince bent down to intercept, bringing his blade to meet there weapons.

_Cling! Clang! Cling! Cling! Clang! Clash!_

Somehow or other Marth managed to block all the weapons with a mixture of his blade and his armor; none of the bandits managing to get any advantage over the swordsman.

"I'd back away now before you all end up at the end of my blade." he told the bandits, his calm, yet determined demeanor never wavering

Not taking his advice they tried to push against him, hoping their combined weight would topple him, but at the angle he had all the bandits at, they couldn't.

"Very well." he said, "Counter!" he yelled and in a flash threw all five off

Weapons went flying; the bandits losing their grip when they were catapulted away, and had it not been for Zelda and her quick reflexes the weapons would have found a home on the noggins of the passengers. Idly hanging in the air the weapons floated, inches from their shocked targets.

"Thank you Zelda, I see that I overdid it somewhat. Had it not been for you the patrons of this train may have met with an ill fate." he said

"Do not beat yourself up over it Marth. Mistakes happen." she said, tossing the offending weapons out of the window with her powers, "Well that's better."

Some of the bandits, including those who had yet to battle, wisely backed away, seeing as they were not much of a match for these odd people, though a few of the more bold one's bravely stepped forward, charging the Smashers yet again…only to find themselves mysteriously suspended in mid-air.

Protest rang from their mouths as they tried to get down, but found it impossible, all due to the young boy who had one hand over his head, seemingly concentrating hard and the other hand in a pointing motion toward the bandits.

"You psychics got it too easy." Falco snorted, "All ya got to do is point and there ya go." he grunted

"Psychic powers aren't as easy as you may think Falco." Zelda replied, "In reality it takes a lot of concentration." she said

"I didn't see you concentrating." he said, "Unlike cap-boy over here."

"I'm more adept than Ness is." she said, trying to make is sound less conceited than it actually did, "But Ness is powerful in his own right." she replied, "My powers are more magic based so in terms of who's the better psychic, Ness would be the victor." she explained

"Besides…," began Ness, "I'd like to see you do this!" he said, spinning the bandits around in the air

He spun them faster and faster, building up speed and when he was at the desired velocity the young boy flung them down the car, toward the remaining bandits, toppling all of them in a sea of bodies.

"Heh…" chuckled Ness, his expression directed toward Falco

"Hn." he muttered, "Show-off."

"Hey…" Ness said, just remembering something, "Where's Kirby?" he asked

"Hn?" muttered Falco, "Last I saw he was barreling down the train like a bat out of hell. I'm surprised he missed these idiots though, must have had other plans."

The avian pilot couldn't have been more right about that. Currently, riding atop the fast moving train Kirby stood in disbelief as he faced what he believed to be a new opponent. Not one of the bandits that was currently robbing the train, but someone from his past, or more accurately, someone from himself.

"Hey...it's you." Kirby pointed out, staring at would appear to be his doppelganger (albeit being gray in color), "What're you doing here Shadow Kirby?" Kirby asked, "Did you come to steal my food?" he asked in offense

In response, 'Shadow Kirby' launched himself at Kirby, throwing a kick at the pink blob. Kirby's reflexed kicked in and he jumped to avoid the blow, spinning over Shadow Kirby and landing behind him, but as if he had read his mind Shadow Kirby turned on a heel and lunged toward Kirby the moment the pink gumball landed. Kirby hopped to the side, once again avoid the blow, but Shadow Kirby changed the angle of his attack by spinning on his stubby hands, thus allowing him to throw another kick at Kirby. Kirby didn't have the chance to dodge so he was had no choice but to block the blow.

"Why are you fighting with me!?" Kirby cried out, utterly confused, "We're not enemies!"

Shadow Kirby was alway a curious one, assisting Kirby at the oddest of times, even during the final battle with Dark Mind, but the way he was acting now was just too odd, even for him.

"I..." Kirby heard Shadow Kirby murmur, causing the pink star warrior to raise a curious eyebrow

Once again Kirby amazed the world with this feet, since he had no _eyebrows_ to speak off.

"...want..." Shadow Kirby continued, pushing against Kirby harder, "...to be...to be...to be..."

"...to be...what?" Kirby asked, feeling as if he were playing a game of twenty questions, "What do you want to be?" he asked, matching Shadow Kirby's strength

"...to be...free..." he said, before a dark look overcastted his normal, docile features, "...OF YOU!" he roared, throwing all his strength into a full body tackle

As expected, Kirby was thrown back by the blow, but quickly recovered and looked up to lock eyes with the enraged puffball.

"Why are you so mad?" Kirby asked

Shadow Kirby grinned manically and proceeded to answer Kirby's question.

"Shadow Star!"

* * *

"What's going on?" asked one of the bandits 

Having heard a commotion three cars down from where Zelda and the gang were, this particular bandit wondered just what was happening.

_Knock. Knock. Knock._

"Huh?" the bandit wondered, looking toward the source of the sound

Near a window he saw an unusually large, unusually hair hand knocking on the grass before retreating from view. Curiosity getting the better of him he walked over to the window and opened it, looking outside for the hair hand. This pinnacled the biggest mistake of his life.

With the speed of a shark the large, hairy hand reached out and grabbed hold of the bandit. It's form easily wrapping around the bandit's smaller frame, pulling him out the window. He barely had time to scream in fright before he was pulled from view.

_Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!_

It didn't take long for the other bandits to scurry out the windows to engage whatever grabbed their ally, weapons in hand. Just as the group made it to the top of the speeding train they came face-to-face with their attacker, the one and only DK. They watched in horror as the large simian threw the unconscious bandit in his paws clean from the train, to tumble down to the snowy field.

"Kill it!" one of the bandits roared and as a group they charged the tie-wearing ape

DK beat his chest proudly, the bandits' charge only proving to fuel DK's desire for a fight. The first bandit to reach the daunting simian attacked by thrusting his spear forward, trying to impale the far larger creature, but DK easily avoided the attack, grabbing hold of the offending weapon and snapping off the head of it with a simple flick of his large hand. Another attacker lunged at DK, his blade slicing through the air, but DK's amazing reach stopped him cold. The earlier bandit, now relieved of his weapon, tried to land a punch on the Kong, but DK intercepted him yet again, grabbing hold. Now with two struggling bandits in hand DK did the only thing that seemed reasonable at the moment. He used them as clubs.

"Look out!" one cried, just as he took a hit to the head from his ally turned bludgeoning tool

_WHAM!_

Enemies scattered, trying to get away from the long reach of DK, though there were some unfortunate enough to be clobbered before they had a chance to flee. After about five good whacks against his opponents, DK's living clubs were out of it, moaning and groaning as they slipped into the sweet release of unconsciousness. Feeling slight pity for the beaten bandits DK decided to end his human clubbing, and tossed the two off the train.

"Hey you bear!" someone barked, gaining the bandits as well as DK's attention

"Huh?"

DK turned to meet the one who yelled at him and came face-to-face with a green parka-wearing man. DK gave the man an odd look and the man was quick to respond to this.

"What, why ya giving me that look?" the guy demanded

"DK no bear." DK replied, "DK is Kong." he told him, "Who you?" he asked

"Heh..." the guy chuckled, swinging his large club over his head for dramatic effect, "You can call me Malamute and I'm gonna beat you down and take that fur of yours as my prize." he said, pointing his club as DK

DK's eyes furrowed at that. The guy may have been pretty impressed to be able to easily swing that large club around, but nobody was gonna make a throw rug out of this Kong.

_Graaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!!!!!!!!!!_

DK's roar was loud and proud, his more feral nature making a show. Pusa looked undaunted by the show of fierceness and stood firm against the might that was DK. With a mighty kick of his legs DK leapt forward, pulling back his fist and clenching his knuckles to unleash a might punch toward his much smaller adversary.

* * *

It seemed in the excitement of battle the Smashers had become separated, moving through the large train, fighting a fierce battle with the bandits. Though they weren't much of a threat alone, there were quite a few of them to contend with and with the captive passengers, hiding behind anything they could, the Smashers had to be cautious. 

"Graaaah!" cried one of the bandits as a sword tore through his guard, knocking him to the ground

Though he escaped with his life it didn't look as if he'd be getting up anytime soon and with another enemy defeated Marth continued his progression down the dining car, one of the largest cars of the train as of yet.

"I was sure Kirby would be here." he thought, though his thoughts were cut short as two more bandits attacked

Three blows were exchanged with the first bandit before Marth broke the man's weapon with a powerful slash, toppling him under the power of the blow. The second came at Marth's side, hoping to hit him in his blind spot, but Marth was too quick, twirling around so that the flat part of his blade struck the top of the man's hand, causing him to drop his weapon. Marth's hand came swiftly afterward, connecting with the side of the man's face and dropping him quickly.

"Come." Marth said, raising his sword to head-level, pointing at three other bandits spread about the dining car

The three shivered in place, not wanting to engage the far more skilled swordsman in battle. Luckily for them they didn't have to.

"You're a bunch of sorry cowards." Said a voice, "Scared off by just one man."

"Mackenzie." One said, "He's stronger than any of us and…" the bandit tried to explain

"Shut up." Mackenzie said, letting the hook of his grappling hook fall to the floor, "You're all pathetic." He said, "Now get out of my sight before I kill you along with him."

The bandits jumped to their feet and took off, quickly vacating the dining car. Marth glanced at this new bandit's tool, the wicked looking claw at the forefront of his thoughts.

"That isn't designed just for grappling." Marth thought, "That was intended to rip someone apart. Even a passing glance from that weapon would be foolhardy. I must keep on my toes." He thought

With a flick of his hand, Mackenzie popped his weapon in the air and began to rotate his wrist, which in turn rotated the grappling hook while his other hand held on firmly to the yards of rope that made up the rest of the hook. In seconds the hook became nothing but a blur, even to Marth's sharp eyes and even though this was his enemy Marth couldn't help but feel a little astound at the man's ability. However, that feeling of astonishment turned to horror as Mackenzie glanced about the dining car. Though relatively hidden behind an assortment of overturned tables and such, the patrons of the car were still in harms way and with a weapon such as Mackenzie's spinning around madly it was almost certain that the fight would be brought to them and the bandit would make sure of that.

"So, you're gonna try and stop us and protect these passengers, eh?" the man asked, chuckling slightly

"I warn you now, dare bring one of these innocents into this battle and you will experience the full wrath of my blade." He said, his eyes almost glowing with anger

"Well, well. Big talk for a guy who wears jewelry." Mackenzie mocked, referring to Marth's tiara

Marth's eye twitched. If there was one thing that could push the calm prince over the edge it was when someone made a rude comment about his tiara and what it might impose. So, he wanted to wear a tiara, was that a crime? If someone just had to make fun of the gender implications it would oppose that it was there own ignorant fault and the prince hated ignorant people.

"I see. But maybe the one who should be talking is me." He said, "I mean, wielding such a weapon. Are you scared to face someone of skill in close combat? Afraid I'll 'dirty you up'?" he asked

Mackenzie grunted at the jab, trying to play it off, but Marth caught his anger and smirked. That smirk sent the bandit off and he growled at Marth before launching the hook at full force toward him. Though is anger had blinded him a little, throwing the hook off somewhat, the hook was still too dangerous a weapon to simply dodge sparingly so Marth jumped to the side to avoid the blow, taking refuge behind an overturned table. Seeing as his attack missed Mackenzie pulled back on the rope and the grappling hook snapped back toward him with amazing speed.

"He's quite adept with that hook, more so than I thought." Marth commented, "This fight is getting rather interesting." He said, despite himself

Though he cherished the well being of the passengers in the train above his own, the blue-haired prince was not immune to his pride and the stir of excitement a fight could give.

"Hiding and dodging will only do so much because of the way that hook is shaped. If I'm going to defeat him I must get in close." He told himself, peering off the edge of the table

The moment he did he had to pull his head back quickly to avoid having it be taken off by the hook, which smashed part of the table he was hiding behind.

"Okay then…let's get this started." Marth thought before dashing out from behind the table

Mackenzie was grinning madly as Marth approached, his hook mimicking him with its insane spinning. He was going to have fun tearing this sissy man apart.

* * *

Zelda found herself staring into the eyes of an odd man. It wasn't his choice of clothing that was odd, even though he was in a bright yellow parka. Nor was it his choice of weaponry, even if it was a large two-handed ice pick. No, it was the man's behavior that was odd. He was calm, too calm, even for Zelda's standards. His expression was deadpan, almost as if he was dead to the world. The only way she could tell he was actually conscious was the slight movement of his eyes as he gauged both Zelda and Ness. 

"So you are the trouble-makers that are causing the commotion."

It was more of a statement that a question.

"Hey, you're the troublemakers!" barked Ness

"Who says?" asked a seemingly younger girl (though older than Ness), her ice hammer laid effortlessly across her shoulders

The way she held her weapon was reminiscent of a certain Smasher that was currently riding atop the train.

"Hmm? You sorta remind me of Nana." Ness replied offhandedly, "The hammer and all."

Subsequently this new bit of info brought about a startled reaction from both bandits.

"You know the heir?" the woman asked

"Heir…oh yeah, Nana's the heir." Ness said, feeling slightly foolish that that particular thought slipped his mind, "Yeah, we're friends, hang out with her all the time." He said, "As a matter of fact she's…"

"Ness." Zelda said, in a dark, scolding manner

Ness quickly shut his trap and looked up at the older psychic. He vaguely wondered what she could be thinking, but dared not to ask, given the look she had in her eye.

"If they know the heirs then most likely they are accompanying them for some reason." The banding in yellow commented, "That would be the only reason that these foreigners would be here at this time." He deduced, "Am I correct?"

Zelda's eyes widened, though only slightly, but just enough to give the bandit all the answer he needed.

"I see. Though I cannot say for sure if this will make our job any easier." He admitted

"Whatever." The orange girl replied, "Let's just take these two out and then search for the heirs."

"Ness." Zelda called, gaining the young boy's attention, "Whatever is going on it involves Nana, we cannot let these bandits corner her under any circumstances." She said

"Gotcha." He replied, "But what's so important that they need Nana?" he asked

"I couldn't tell you, but as of right now it doesn't matter." She said, disappearing from sight

"Huh?" muttered the orange girl, "Where'd she go?"

"Above!" yelled the yellow man, breaking from his deadpan demeanor for the moment

His ally wouldn't react quickly enough to the impending danger so he pushed her aside just enough to avoid being pummeled by the ever evasive warrior that took Zelda's place.

"Who are you!?" barked the female, raising her ice hammer high in the air, ready to engage in battle, "And where'd the other one go!?"

"I do not believe now is the time to worry about that." The male bandit said

"It'd be wise to listen to your friend." The red-eyed warrior advised, "A fight with a Sheikah is not a fight you should be distracted in."

* * *

"Ugh…" groaned a bandit as he met his defeat at the hands of a little girl 

"This…isn't good." The young girl said, staring about the devastation she had created

The moaning and groaning of multiple bandits could be heard all around the little girl, their lives spared only because the young girl didn't believe in excessive fighting.

"Agh! Let go!" she heard someone bark

Without hesitation she took off toward the source of the yell, and before long she noticed a large man holding a dog by the scruff of its neck, who Nana presumed was the engineer, given his clothes.

"Look, I just asked ya ta stop da train but ya won't listen so now I got ta throw you off." The large man said, a wicked grin on his face

"Oh…you are insufferable!" the dog barked (pun intended) "This despicable attack will come around to bite you on the butt (pun intended as well)."

"I don't believe in all that karma crap." The man said, "Now off ya go."

"Put him down…on the train, not off it." Nana ordered

She had seen enough television to know that when an evil villain held someone over somewhere high and the hero yelled 'put them down' the villain always threw them off, believing they were _ever so_ funny.

"Hmm?" the man muttered before turning to the small voice, "What are ya doin' here kid?" he asked, "Look, grown folks are talkin' here so why don't you mind ya own business and go play with ya dolls or whatnot?" he told her

"Put him on the train, now." She ordered again, her voice leaving no room for error

"Heh." The man chuckled, "Ya got spunk kid, but ya outta ya league." He said, before releasing his grip on the engineer

The engineer fell, but only for a second, for a pillar of ice shot from the side of the train and stopped his descent.

"Huh?" the large man gasped, turning back to Nana

Her hand was held out and the remnants of coldness were wafting from the extended palm. It had happened so quickly that the bandit had almost not seen the blast of ice release from the young girl's hand and hit the side of the train.

"Are you okay?" she asked the dog

"Ruff! Yes ma'am, thank ye for the timely assist." He said, as he scrambled back into the locomotive, "Please ma'am, be careful against that brute if you plan on fighting, but giving him what for, for this old dog!" he called out

"No problem." She said, smiling back to the dog

"Woof!" he barked happily before disappearing back inside the locomotive to gain back control of the train

"Only a few people can use _that_ power. Ya from Hiehie Village, aren't cha?" he asked

"Yeah."

"Well then, ya wouldn't happen to be…one of the heirs, would ya?" he asked, his grin growing wild

Nana raised her mallet to the man, a look of determination now plastered across it as she told him just who she was.

"I am Nana Aisu Kuraimā, of Hiehie Village, heir to the 'Treasure of the Weather Casters." She told the man, "And I'm gonna _**crush**_ you!"

* * *

Hope you like. 

Note: Interesting piece of info. The part of the train that actually pulls the rest of the train along the tracks is called the 'locomotive' even though the train as a whole is referred to as a locomotive. _Motive_..._motion_...get it.

Note: Shadow Kirby is from one of Kirby's Games, Kirby and the Amazing Mirror. I will try to flesh out his character more in later chapters but as of right now I'm just introducing him and using him as an excuse for a big battle.

Note: Aisu Kuraimā means Ice Climber.

Note: The names of the villains are named after sled dogs


	9. Influence Part 3

Even more action-packed excitement in the third installment of Influence! Hold onto your seats.

* * *

"Hn." Muttered the top-pilot of the StarFox Team, "That was boring." He said, looking about the defeated bandits 

There was not reason to finish them off, none of them were getting up anytime soon, and even if they managed they wouldn't be much of a threat to Falco.

"Didn't even get to use my blaster." He muttered

The moment those words came from his beak his senses kicked in as they detected something slicing through the air. From his holster came his blaster and in the blink of an eye he fired, the laser blast coming in contact with something reflective.

_Ping!_

"I stand corrected." He said, holstering his blaster as he looked down at the knife impeded in the floor, the knife he had just deflected with a well timed laser shot

"Impressive, but I'd expect no less from a hawk." Replied a low, sultry voice

Falcon turned to this new occupant.

"Falcon, actually." Falco replied, "And you'd be?"

"Seppala." Replied the woman, her large hunting knife resting lazily in her grip, "Do you…have a name..." she asked, pausing for effect

"Falco, Falco Lombardi" he replied, his bored expression unchanging

"Hmm…I haven't quite seen a 'bird' such as yourself in these snowy lands, and I have seen quite a few."

"You some sort of bird-watcher?" he asked

"You could say that." The woman said, "I have, some 'trophies' from my expeditions."

Falco raised an eyebrow.

"You would look very good besides my other trophies…Falco." She replied, smiling

"I don't think so lady." He said, clenching his fists and moving into a fighter's stance

"I'm going to have fun on this hunt." She said, tightening her grip on her weapon, "A lot of fun."

Seppala was the first to strike, her large knife scrapping across the floor wildly before she pulled it up to bring it down on Falco's head. The blue falcon dodged and went to counter with a punch, but the surprisingly nimble woman turned on her heel, avoiding the blow. Using the momentum from the turn she struck out with her blade once more, but Falco saw it coming and rolled to safety. Seppala quickly reached into her parka, grabbing hold of a concealed weapon and flung it at the retreating falcon.

_Ping!_

Once again Falco managed to block the oncoming knife with his blaster, causing the gleaming projectile to spiral madly out of an open window. Seppala growled a bit before charging again, her large knife close to her body as she approached. Falco's natural flexibility aided him in his dodging of the woman, though Seppala herself was no pushover. The woman's strikes came fast and precise, but Falco dodged them, the knife cleaving through chairs, tables, etc. Frightened passengers dove for cover as the two fighters let loose, a barrage of sword swings and laser shots flying about the car.

"Crap…all these passengers are in the way, she'll end up lopping one of their heads off if this keeps up." Falco thought, looking out the window, "Ugh…I really don't want to go out there…" he murmured, looking about the passenger car, "But I guess I don't have a choice."

"He's distracted!" she thought excitedly, rushing him and slamming into Falco with a shoulder tackle

The quick attack toppled him, but he managed to get to his feet before Seppala could finish him with a downward strike.

"_Grr_…stop moving around so much. I won't be able to get a clean slice if you keep moving and I don't wan to mess you up too badly, my trophy would come out horrible then."

"Like I'll stop if you ask…" mumbled Falco, "Go jump in a lake."

"Your tongue is just as sharp as you moves, I'll have to deal with them both."

"Yeah? Deal with this!" He said, grabbing his blaster and taking aim

Before she had a chance to react he fired, the blast hitting its mark of her left knee. Her leg buckled and she went down to one knee, cursing under her breath. By the time she looked up Falco was already upon her, firing a kicked toward her face. She managed to block the blow, but Falco followed through, knocking her off balance where she tumbled the rest of the way to the floor. Falco aimed for a finishing blow but Seppala was quicker, flinging a knife at him. He managed to dodge, but noticed an odd grin run across Seppala's face and that's when he realized the knife wasn't aimed for _him_.

"Damn!"

He seemed to stop, only for a moment before he shot off, disappearing in a flash of blue, reappearing in front of a frightened passenger, directly in the knife's path. He didn't have time to shoot so he did the only thing he could think off to block the knife.

_Cling!_

Metal met metal in a head on collision; the sharp projectile that had been thrown piercing the hide of the more advanced tech.

_Crack! Sizzle!_

"Oh come on! I liked that blaster." He grumbled as he now held a punctured blaster, the core of the gun shattered, leaking energy from the hole created by the knife

"Ha, ha, ha, ha." She giggled, "Now then, without that odd weapon it should be much easier gutting you." She said

"You'll pay for breaking my favorite blaster." He said, making his way toward a window, "Mind if we take this fight outside, this place is too cramped for my style." He said, ducking out

As he climbed atop the fast moving train he only hoped that his adversary would follow and luckily she did, coming out a few seconds after he did.

"Well, well. It seems you have a sense of morality." She said, "Feeling sorry for those passengers, eh?"

"Please, they were just in my way." He said, reaching into his coat and pulling something out, "With all those animals in there I wouldn't be able to use these." He said, donning a pair of gloves

"Gloves? That is you big secret? Ha! What are gloves going to do to help you, you've lost you weapon but I still have mine. You're defenseless."

"Not having something to club someone with doesn't mean you defenseless, besides, these aren't just any old gloves." He said, proving this fact by clenching his fists

A bright, light blue light began to glow from his clenched fists, bathing the avian pilot in a soft glow. Seppala quirked an eyebrow, vaguely wondering what strange magic the bird man was summoning. But instead of waiting for him to make a move she ran at him, hoping to cut him down before he could pull anything.

"Ha!" she yelled as her swings came rapidly

Falco dodged the first strike with difficultly and barely dodged the second. Seppala swept with her feet, knocking him off his own, but Falco managed to catch himself, flipping over on his hands and pushing away as a fourth strike came his way. The fifth however he didn't have time to dodge as Seppala came for a wild slash, meant to take his shoulder out. In an instant he shoot his wing out and surprisingly caught the fast moving knife, stopping it cold turkey.

"How?"

"I knew you'd ask that." He cackled, "Since I know ya don't know anything about these babies I'll simplify it for ya." He said, cracking his knuckles, "Shield Gloves."

* * *

"Run, now!" yelled Marth, ushering out passengers while he held his ground while Mackenzie's lethal hook was entangled in Marth's blade, the holder of said hook over ten feet away 

As non-combatants scrambled out Mackenzie was torn between thinking Marth a joke and being somewhat impressed with him. His first impression of Marth was of some spoiled, rich boy spewing bravado of how he would protect the innocent. But as Marth matched Mackenzie skill-for-skill Mackenzie knew that even with the large interior of the train, the space he had was keeping him from unleashing his true potential. Too many places to get his hook caught and Mackenzie couldn't afford to let that happen, given Marth's speed and reach.

"I'm gonna shred you." Mackenzie growled, as he gripped the rope of his hook

"Talk. Only talk" Marth replied, unimpressed

Mackenzie growled louder and flicked his rope, thus detaching his hook from Marth's blade. The aforementioned prince had to bend back in order to avoid being scarred by the flailing weapon. Catching the hook the destructive climber gave Marth a mocking grin before smashing in a window with his rabid-looking weapon.

"Catch me if you can." He mocked before lunging out of the window

"Humph. He's leaving for more room in order to use his weapon to its fullest." Marth quickly analyzed, "It would be disadvantageous for me to follow him out there and yet, I cannot ignore the challenge." He told himself, following the bandit out of the window

Now, while Marth was a man who cherished honor greatly, Mackenzie did not share the same ideology and if it hadn't been for Marth's quick reflexes the blue-prince would have lost his head the moment he climbed out of the window.

After dodging another strike Marth managed to make his way on the roof of the speeding train, his sword at the ready as Mackenzie spun his hook even faster than before.

"As Ness would say, _that was a cheap move!_" Marth barked

"Heh, heh. There're no rules in a fight. Only the winner and the loser."

"Fine then, if you want a battle like that than expect no mercy!" barked Marth

With a grunt Mackenzie let loose his weapon and it sliced through the air with such intensity that it almost sounded as if it was screaming insanely. Marth stood his ground, blade in front of him as the deranged weapon closed in.

* * *

Hammer and bat collided with impressive strength as Ness and the bandit he was battling contested with one another. 

"You're not too bad kid." The girl said, watching as Ness retreated slightly from just dodging a hammer swing

"The name's_ Ness_." Ness told her

"Humph, cocky." She replied, "Well then if we're givin' names then I guess I should tell you mine. Might as well know who's gonna beat ya."

"Yeah right!" barked Ness, "Whoever you are crazy girl you'll never beat me!"

"My name's Samoyed you little brat, better remember it!" she yelled back, "So you better respect you senior!"

"You're hardly older than me!" Ness shot back

"I'm still older so you better respect me!"

"Yeah right!"

"Why you!"

As the two barked at one another, a much quieter match was taking place a few feet away. As the wind whipped across their faces and the scenery became nothing but a blur, the two silent warriors stared at one another, sizing the other up. But they knew that eventually the battle would start and the bandit in yellow was the first to make a move. Rushing toward Sheik with surprising speed he split his ice pick into two separate pieces, giving him two serrated blades to attack with. With his options of attack increased Sheik had to change up her plan to defeat him, but he came in fast, slashing down with incredible precision. She managed to dodge, but he came with another attack with his opposite hands as the other finished. Sheik back-flipped away from the attack, but mid-way through the flip she moved into a handstand, bending down and spinning, unleashing a kick toward the man's head. Caught slightly off guard he was forced to block, but at the angle Sheik swung she was able to use her weight to throw him off balance. He nearly tumbled off the train, but at the last moment he thrust his blades into the roof, stopping him from stumbling.

"Pretty good." He said, taking a defensive stance, his serrated blades close

"So he wants me to attack 'eh?" Sheik thought, "He's patient enough to wait it out as long as he needs and he knows I don't have the time to drag this battle out." She surmised, "So be it, I will bring the fight to him."

"Before you attack I would like to know what you are called warrior, for had we met under different circumstances I would be able to enjoy this battle more. You are quite the fighter." He said, "You may call me Sakhalin."

Sheik quirked an eyebrow, a little taken back that her enemy would find the time to compliment her during battle, although she was smart to not show her surprise to her pick wielding adversary.

"Heh. The name is Sheik." She chuckled, "And, only a fighter confident in his abilities would compliment their opponent." She said

"True." He replied

"I commend you though for doing it. And I must say you're rather skilled yourself."

"I thank you." He said, "Now then, come."

With a flick of her wrist needles appeared in her hands as she charged her adversary, her feet beating along the roof of the train at a rapid pace. Sakhalin's grip tightened on his blades as Sheik quickly approached, his eyes darting between her hands and her feet. Her alien flexibility gave her an advantage over him, so watching her movements carefully was a must.

"There." He thought as he saw Sheik turn her ankle to the left, "She's going to dart to the right and come at my side." He thought, preparing himself for the attack

There was only one problem with his analysis, he didn't realize that she could bend her leg at the same time she could turn her ankle. By the time he realized what she was going to do she had already jumped into the air, hands crossed, letting gravity do the work on her descent. He tried to hop away to avoid the attack, but Sheik managed to land a blow on the escaping bandit. Luckily for him he moved away enough to avoid the full intent of the attack, escaping with only two needles imbedded in his right side. Sheik had tried to stun him with her attack, but his quick escape only left him with a slight tingling sensation. Sakhalin was quick to pull the needles from him, not wanting Sheik to try and further his pain.

* * *

Jigglypuff looked out the window of the speeding train, slightly worried for the safety of her friends. Though she knew that her fellow Smashers could take care of themselves, she couldn't help but worry over them, especially for Kirby. She could not shake the feeling that something was very, very wrong, but she tried to keep herself from worrying too much. Just as she was about to step away from the window she saw Kirby, or what she thought to be Kirby, zooming past on what she believed to be the Shadow Star. Moments later, Kirby appeared again, this time on the Warpstar, following the first Kirby in hot pursuit. 

"Jiggly?"

Thinking that she was losing her mind, the balloon Pokemon rubbed her eyes, hoping that she wasn't seeing things, but looking again she indeed saw two different Kirbys doing battle with one another in the sky. Her original, beloved Kirby atop his Warpstar fighting against another Kirby, grey in color, doing battle on the Shadow Star.

"What in name of Arceus?" she murmured as she watched the battle before her, "What going on?"

"My oh my, isn't that that strange pink fellow Robert?" asked Bridget

"I do believe so Bridget, though I can not fathom who that doppelganger following him is."

As the couple watched with a mixed looked of confusion and awe, Jigglypuff stood distraught at the current situation. The balloon Pokemon wanted to go out and find out what was going on, but she promised Zelda she would stay to protect Griff, Robert, and Bridget and if there was one thing that the puffball was, she loyal to her word.

"Jiggly..." she moaned, depressed

"Go young one." Robert said, never meeting Jigglypuff's gaze as she turned to him, "You obviously wish to go out there and who am I to try and keep you from such."

"No...Jigglypuff stay, must keep safe." she replied

"Do not worry so much about us." replied Bridget, rubbing lovingly against her husband's neck, "We may be old, but we are by no means weak. We'll be able to handle ourselves." she said

"Yes, go!" replied Griff, "Your duty is out there, to find the source of these problems. I am sure you friends will understand."

"Jigglypuff...Thank you."

"No problem young one, now go." replied Griff, "And if you have the chance, could you check on Lady Nana?" he asked

"Jiggly." she replied, before climbing out a nearby window

"I suppose that means 'yes'?" Robert inquired

* * *

Being avian in nature, Falco Lombardi naturally enjoyed fighting in the air more than he did on the ground. Thus his high jumping ability was a substitute for his inability to fly without an Arwing. Coupled with his long reach and above average speed, Falco was a contender to be wary of. Now, with his 'Shield Gloves' active he had a very reliable, if not near-impregnable defense that made him stronger then ever. However, Seppala was no push over, and though somewhat cruel and deceitful, she was still a competent fighter. It was only Falco's flexibility that allowed him to dodge and block the sword swings coming from Seppala and her large hunting knife, a knife that gave her a reach almost as far as Marth, though her move set was much different, and more open than the blue-haired prince. She slashed along the top of the train, creating a shower of sparks to erupt from her blade before bring it up toward Falco. Falco backed away, avoiding the blow and pushed forward, clenching his fists. His opponent swung in a wide arc, low to his feet and Falco took flight, hopping over the leg cleaving move, which was what Seppala was hoping for, spinning completely around and aiming for his head as she completed her spin. Landing, he blocked, putting his arms up to take the blow, realizing at that time that Seppala was stronger than she seemed. Though his shield gloves took the blade, the blow knocked him off balance, causing him to stumble. She tried to take advantage, but her movements were not quick enough to catch Falco, who tumbled away and out of her reach. 

"Heh." chuckled Falco, his breathing coming in slightly labored, "This is better than I thought it be." he murmured to himself

Pulling back her blade, Seppala moved into a stance, letting her blade hang close to her side, her left hand extended slightly as if she were preparing to thrust her blade forward. Falco cocked an eyebrow. Her weapon, though large and sharp, was not quite suited for piercing strikes, its slight curve made it ill-suited for such a task, but Falco kept his guard up nonetheless. Seppala charged with sword and arm still in the same position as she rushed her avian opponent. Falco clenched his fists tighter, fully expecting her to attack the moment she was in range, hoping her reach would do the work for her. But instead she plunged her sword toward the top of the train and using her momentum from the run, used her blade as pole-vault and launched herself at Falco. Thoroughly surprised, Falco tried to back away, but Seppala came in too quick, driving her spiked boots into Falco's chest. Luckily for the pilot, his clothes were thick, so he didn't have a pattern of small holes in his chest, but clothing alone couldn't stop the force of the blow, which knocked Falco off his feet and sent him skidding across the car they were standing on. The ice atop of the train sent him so far he eventually went off, disappearing in the space between cars.

"I do hope he's still okay." she said, "I do want my trophy after all."

The Inuit bandit would have sauntered over to see if Falco had been run over or not, but she didn't need to, as Falco jumped up and landed on the top of the train, forgoing any witty banter and rushing her at an amazing speed. Seppala put her blade up to block but Falco who, instead of backing away or simply trying to bust through her guard, stopped momentarily before shooting by her. Seppala swore Falco went _through_ her, so she was unprepared for the 'ghost' that smashed into her as Falco appeared behind her. The impact popped her into the air; Falco turning as quickly as he was able and jumping up after her, flames erupting from his body as he took to the air. Seppala knew the attack was coming but, unlike the Smashers, she wasn't adept at dodging in mid-air and Falco was coming in much too fast. She was left with only one choice, to tense up and hope she could take the blow. She felt a searing pain in her back before she was launched into the air, leaving a blazing trail in her wake.

* * *

Meanwhile, a certain blue-haired prince and hook-wielding psycho were coming to blows, further up the train. The top of the train was littered with cut marks and impact points from the battle between the two fighters. Mackenzie sported a self-assured grin as he spun his hook; the speed at which it swung creating a shrilled whistling noise to the ears. But behind the confident outlook, Mackenzie was quickly analyzing his situation with less than spectacular conclusions. 

"I thought coming outside would work in my advantage. But we just came to a standstill." he thought angrily, "How could this guy be equal with me!? Just look at him!"

Marth stood at the ready, sword drawn just in front of him, eagerly awaiting Mackenzie's next attack. The battle had given Marth an insight on Mackenzie's battle style and Marth had almost figured out Mackenzie's moves, though the odd movement of the bandit's hook was another story.

"He has almost complete control of not only the hook, but the rope as well. He follows the movements of his weapon in its entirety so it's not just the hook I'm fighting. I must admit, it takes a great level of control to battle the way he is, but his weapon still has a flaw. Close-range combat is my key to victory here, but this bandit is no fool. He is keeping his distance and anytime I try to get close he just swings it around in a wide circle, forcing me to back off. Not to mention the exceptional speed at which he extends and retracts the weapon. If I only had a few moments I could end this in a single blow."

The train was moving over a vast landscape, meaning no environmental factor to help him in this fight and the top of the train didn't sport much in the way of hook-tangling protrusions, leaving Marth out of luck. If Marth was going to finish this he knew he would have to stop holding back.

"Single Sword Art: Perfect Slash." he said, taking on a new stance

With a double-handed grip on his blade, Marth held the Falchion in front of him at an angle as he concentrated. A light hue of violet cascaded over his eyes as he glared at Mackenzie, whose hook twirled in the air with a life of its own.

"What are you mumbling about?" Mackenzie asked, "Last words before you die?"

"No, your defeat." Marth replied

"Oh really?" Mackenzie asked mockingly, though with a hint of irritation

This battle was taking far too long for Mackenzie's taste. His blue-haired opponent should have gone done ages ago, but there he stood, almost mocking Mackenzie's skill. The hook wielding bandit would have none of that and twirling his blade to the point where it was almost invisible, Mackenzie would make sure that this attack could do the prince in.

"Now die!" he yelled, throwing the hook with killer intent

Marth watched and waited, but not for long as the weapons screamed through the air toward the prince.

"Pause."

Time for Marth slowed. For Marth, the train seemed to be moving at a slug's pace. Each and every snowflake in Marth's peripheral vision became easily recognizable. Even the hook itself seemed less threatening at the pace it seemed to come at. It was not until the hook was in range did Marth swing, pulling his arms up, before forcing them down, smashing his sword with full-force into the oncoming death-bringer.

"Perfect Slash!"

_Shing!_

"N-n-no way!" Mackenzie stuttered, watching in horror as his prized weapon literally shattered when it came in contact with Marth's blade

The bandit hadn't even seen the attack properly until the two weapons collided and by then it was far too late. Without the weight of his hook, the rope went limp, as did Mackenzie's hopes for victory. Marth dashed forward, though the glow in his eyes had faded and the world came smashing back to him in all its fast-paced glory. Mackenzie saw Marth coming, but so put off by the complete destruction of his weapon he didn't move away fast enough to avoid the prince and with a small leap Marth was upon him. As Marth descended he swung downward and to the left, catching Mackenzie in the chest. Mackenzie lost his balance and was thrown back, eventually over the edge of the train. Marth heard the bandit cry out in dismay as he hit the snow below, disappearing in a cloud of snow and ice.

Meanwhile...

"Did you hear that?" asked Sakhalin, backtracking away from his opponent for the moment

"What?" asked Samoyed

"That sounded like Mackenzie." he replied, "I wonder if he is okay?"

"Probably gloating over his win." the young female replied

"Hmm..." Sakhalin muttered, "I don't think..." he began, until he heard yet another scream, "Look out!" he yelled, looking up to see the source of the yell

The two bandits hopped away just in the nick of time to see a ball of flames come crashing down upon the spot that had just been. The patrons in the car they stood upon noticed a large dent appear in the roof of the car, followed by a strangled cry of pain.

"Sister!"

Samoyed was quick to run to the aid of the previously flaming projectile. The knife-wielding bandit known as Seppala laid in an indentation of her own making, the world of consciousness lost to her for the time.

"You guys still fighting?" asked Falco, having just appeared alongside Sheik and Ness

"It would seem you are already done." Sheik stated

"Hn. Took a little while longer than I thought." he said, "She destroyed my favorite blaster too."

"Well we were just finishing up." Ness replied

"You guys...you'll pay for this!" growled Samoyed, gripping her hammer tightly

"Not now Samoyed." replied Sakhalin, with a much cooler demeanor, "They have us outnumbered and Seppala is in need of healing. We'll have to retreat for now."

"Run away!?" she barked, "No way, they're going down!"

"Not now!" he barked, raising his voice for the first time since the beginning of the fight, "We will have another time to deal with these fighters. The fates will see to that. But for now, we retreat."

Though still filled with righteous fury, the younger of the two bandits followed the orders given to her, grabbing her sister as it seemed and hefting her over her shoulder.

"Don't think this is over. I will get you. Count on it." she said, before she and Sakhalin turned and ran in the opposite direction

"Hey, get back here!" yelled Ness, chasing after, but he was stopped short as Sakhalin released something from the confines of his parka

Small balls, the size of golf balls clattered across the roof of the car and it was not until Ness got close did he recognize what they were.

"Bombs!" Ness shrieked, putting his arms up just as the small incendiary weapons went off

_BOOM!_

When the smoke cleared from the explosion, Ness stood unhurt from the blasts, albeit slightly marred. The three bandits had disappeared from the roof of the train, though the distant sound of a motor engine could be heard as the train chugged on.

"Guess they escaped." Falco commented

"Sorry." replied Ness, sighing despondently

"Nothing to apologize for." he heard said by the familiar sound of Zelda, "Like Sakhalin said, if the fates have anything to do with it, we'll meet again." she replied, "But we should be more focused on the others, especially Nana." she said

"I wonder what she's doing right now?" Ness pondered

* * *

Skidding back, her spiked boots grinding against the roof of the locomotive, Nana breathed heavily as the wind whipped by her face. Her much larger opponent standing a few feet away, his large harpoon held boldly in front of him. 

"Heh, not bad, not bad a'tall." he replied, "I wasn't expectin' ya ta be so strong, but I guess ya ain't the heir fa nothing."

Nana straightened up and glared at her opponent, not in a particular mood to talk.

"Ya know, I don't really need ta waste my time fightin' ya. Ya brother would be a better target anyway, since he's indisposed and all."

"Popo? What are you talking about!?" she barked, "What did you do to my brother!?" she roared

"I didn't do a thing." he replied, "All I knows is that someone took out one of da heirs about a day ago. That's when I thought it be a perfect time ta take the Treasure of da Weather Casters." he said

"Popo...What happened?" she wondered, the grip on her hammer waning slightly

The sound of an engine grabbed both fighters' attentions and the two looked over to see a long truck like train pulling along side the train itself. A red flag blew wildly in the wind, signifying some sort of message.

"Damn...looks like ya and ya friends _are_ tougher than I thought. I guess we'll hafta get the treasure some other time." he said, "But know dis, ya'll is gonna pay for getting in our way." he said, before leaping off the roof of the speeding train and landing on the truck/train.

Nana looked on at the escaping bandits until they were well out of sight, though her thoughts were not on the retreating thieves, but of her brother and what had befallen him. If what the large bandit had said was true, someone attacked her brother. But for what reason? She didn't have an answer to that but she was determined to find out.

* * *

Hope you like. 

Note: I wonder if anyone will get the 'What in name of Arceus?' line.


	10. Influence Part 4

I should probably clear up a few things before I continue on with the story. My summary of the story isn't very helpful in the explanation of what I trying to write and I hope my changes to it make it a little better in understanding. I do intend to write about all the Smashers, but it would be a daunting task to write about all of them at once. I've tried, with another of my stories and I nearly lost my mind doing so. Instead I plan on writing individual stories about groups of different Smashers until I get them all, which would be a far easier plan. I do intend on getting them all so expect everyone of them to get a seat in the spotlight. 

I will admit that one of my stories is based off an episode I saw of a certain show. The general idea may be the same, but I tried my best to stray as far away from the specifics as I could. My first story is actually quite original; though it _was_ based it off of a Manga I saw on the Internet that I had a real fun time reading. For complete originality readers should have fun with my third story, which I try to make a background for the Ice Climbers and introduce a few new villains I plan on using in future stories.

I plan on making the fight scenes more elaborate in the future chapters and use many of the abilities that the Smashers have and introducing a few new ones I thought would be rather cool. I won't go too far out of character with attacks, but expect some wild ones thrown in.

These 'Chronicles' that I am writing are not an actually story line, just small inserts that I am putting in. They are actually leading up to a true plot-driven story I intended to do a little later. As of write now I am developing the characters for better understanding. I hope this clears up any confusion as to my intentions. Think of these 'Chronicles' as the prologue to something bigger.

To my readers, enjoy, and give me feedback, helps with development.

* * *

Excitement reigned supreme on the locomotive after the bandits made a hasty retreat. But contrary to what many may have believed, the excitement was not due to fear, but to rejoice. The sheer level of excitement and thanks that were thrown the Smashers' way was so overwhelming that the Smashers were forced to hide out in their private car just to avoid the frenzy of passengers. At first it was appreciative but it quickly became too much for the Smashers to handle. They were quick to take refuge with Bridget and Robert while Griff tried to restore order to the madhouse that was the train. 

"Geez." muttered Falco, "We were better off with the bandits. At least we could _hit_ them."

"I must agree with Lombardi. Their thanks was appreciated, but that was too much." replied Marth

"Well, you must understand. We potentially saved their lives. I can't say for certain that all the bandits would have caused harm to the passengers intentionally, but we did what we had to do."

"Ha, ya should have seen who I had to fight." Falco commented, "Crazy bird-watcher."

"Speaking of fighting, what has happened to Kirby?" Marth asked, not having seen him come with the others, "As a matter of fact, where is Jigglypuff?"

"Both those odd little creatures left quite some time after you all did." replied Robert, "From what we can gather, there is a shadowy doppelganger of your friend Kirby and he went to do battle with this imposter." he replied

"Yes, and his admirer took off in hot pursuit of Kirby and his impostor in order to help him."

"Great. Just what we need, another bottomless pit to deal with." Grumbled Falco, "I hope he doesn't end up trying to eat one of us." He said

"You should be more worried about the well-being of our allies then what this, 'Shadow Kirby' might do to you." Marth scolded

"I'm worried enough." He replied, "But that gumball ain't a push over. He'll be fine."

"But he fighting himself…don't that mean, other be fine too?" DK asked

"They'll probably end up forgetting about the fight and we'll find Kirby eating something." Falco said, "And if not, we'll find Jiggs all over him."

"I think it'll be better if we go look for them once the train has stopped. This is a new area so Kirby might get lost, but it shouldn't be too hard to find him as long as he has his Warpstar." Zelda replied, "I can only hope that Jigglypuff has stayed close to him."

"With the way she is about that garbage disposal I'm willing to bet that she ain't loss but Kirby is trying to loss _her_."

"Kirby is only one of our concerns. From what Nana has told us, are ally Popo has been hurt badly. I do wonder what Popo's condition is?" Marth asked

"We'll find out when we arrive, but for right now I think it would be best to not mention Popo." Replied Zelda, hinting over to the young girl sitting in the corner of the train car they were in

The female counterpart of the Ice Climber team seemed to sit in a daze, a trance one could say. She thereof, focused the entirety of her attention, or lack outside at the scenery that whirled at a rapid pace.

"She seems out of it." Ness mentioned

"She's worried about her brother." Zelda stated, "That's why it's imperative that we locate Kirby and Jigglypuff as soon as possible. We don't need anything else for her to worry over."

"Right." Replied Falco

"Yes Lady Zelda." Replied Marth

"Yep." Replied Ness

"Uh huh." Replied DK

* * *

"Hmm? Where Kirby go?" asked a wandering soul of the winter land 

Wandering the vast landscape, the Smasher known as Jigglypuff continued on her search for her beloved Kirby. She had lost track of him some time after she chased after the two battling Kirbys and was now alone in the wilderness. Not all hope was lost however, since she had come across a small forest and from the looks of down trees she surmised that the Kirbys had to have come this way. She could only hope to catch up and figure out what exactly was going on because at the moment she was even more confused than she had been on the train.

"Jigglypuff hope others okay." She said to herself

They most likely were, but Jigglypuff still felt guilty for just getting up and leaving, especially after the promise she gave Zelda. Even though Zelda would understand, the principle of the matter still weighed heavily on the balloon Pokemon. But she put that behind her for the moment, she would deal with the consequences later. As of this moment she had to focus on finding Kirby and this imposter.

"Hmm?" she murmured, hearing a distant sound

She couldn't tell what it was that she had heard, but she could tell the general direction of its source and that was enough for her. Curling into a ball she spun rapidly and took off in the direction of the sound. Large plumes of snow were left in her wake as she raced across the forest floor toward the sound. Small animals scurried away as she whisked by and the sound from before came in more clearly; Jigglypuff swearing that it was the sound of Kirby's voice. The forest itself was clearing up; meaning that eventually the two Kirbys might go for higher altitudes and if Jigglypuff didn't catch up, she would lose them.

"Must hurry."

Jigglypuff picked up the pace, blazing across the snow like a pink pinball and soon the sounds of battle came to her ears. She hopped up, uncurling herself in the process and looked to the sky, just to see Kirby and Shadow Kirby leaving the forest and as she guessed, taking their battle up higher.

"Yes!" She cheered, and would have immediately followed after had she not have to deal with a certain interruption

RAWR!!

Appearing from over a snow bank at the edge of the forest came something big, something big and hairy.

"Huh?"

Whatever had appeared in front of the puffball, it was rather large, scaling at least fifteen feet in height. Its body was covered from head-to-toe in long, draping fur, grey in color and strangely enough the large creature reminded Jigglypuff of an oversize Donkey Kong. Jigglypuff raked her mind, trying to figure out just what this thing was for she swore she remembered hearing about it from one of the Smashers. However, the large creature didn't give her the time to think, for, in a fit of rage, it hurled a small boulder in her direction. Jigglypuff took flight, easily avoiding the thrown projectile, watching as the beast roared again and charged her with single-minded fury.

_RAAAAAAAWWWWRRRR!!!!!!!_

The ground shook as the beast approached her, its long legs crossing the distance between the two in moments. It pulled back one of its large paws, revealing four clawed fingers and one clawed thumb, and slammed it down with incredibly force. Jigglypuff hopped away before the attack hit, watching as the ground beneath cracked under the blow.

"Strong." She murmured, taking refuge in a nearby tree

The beast let loose a low grunted, the hot air of his breath visible in the cold environment. It was angry and it tried to take that anger out on her by grabbing hold of a large tree and ripping it from the ground. Pulling back the large creature swung the tree like a bat, slamming it into the tree that Jigglypuff was currently perched on. The first blow caused the tree to shake and crack. However, the second blow proved too much for the tree to handle and toppled the mighty plant. Jigglypuff simply floated away, but the large creature was not done and swung toward the retreating Jigglypuff. Just as the tree came by Jigglypuff ascended, avoiding the blow and furthermore landing on one of the bare branches of the tree the beast was using as a club.

The monster growled in irritation and aimed to shake Jigglypuff off, but Jigglypuff had already curled into a tight ball and shot down the length of the tree, eventually slamming into the large creature's forehead with the force of a cannonball. The beast stumbled back, losing its balance and its grip on the tree. Jigglypuff bounced away, watching as the tree and then the beast fell to the forest floor, kicking up some snow as both hit hard. As Jigglypuff landed the beast rose, growling and rubbing it forehead the entire way up. It bared its teeth at her once it recovered from the blow and with a fierce growl it kicked the downed tree toward the puffball. Once again Jigglypuff jumped, letting the plant growth skid under her until it bounced off another tree where it eventually came to rest a few yards away.

"Graaaaaaah!"

The beast let its irritation loose in a garbled yell of rage, stomping the ground as it through a fit over Jigglypuff and her nimbleness. Jigglypuff too felt irritated over the situation, but for reasons vastly different than the behemoth before her. Kirby was beginning to get out of sight and if Jigglypuff didn't hurry and deal with this monster she might lose the pink garbage disposal. But her distraction of Kirby left her unguarded for the blitz attack thrown by the abominable beast. Jigglypuff jumped away, but the monster was beginning to pick up on her style and threw punch up the moment after he missed. This surprised the ball of air and she took the attack head on. The impact popped her back until she hit a nearby tree, splintering it on contact. Jigglypuff slid down what was left of the tree until she eventually hit the snow-covered ground. The titanic beast loomed over her, raising its paws up to unleash all its rage upon the small creature beneath it.

Jigglypuff curled into a ball and began to spin, but not forward. Staying her ground she kicked up a wave a snow that blasted the monstrous beast, blinding it momentarily. It clawed quickly at its face to try and see once again, but by that time Jigglypuff had already made it to its face. Then, she fell asleep.

PING!

The sharp noise of the attack radiated through the forest, followed by a devastating blast. The monster's head was quickly engulfed in flames and the shock of the explosion toppled the mountainous creature. Its desperate grasp of the nearby trees proved futile as the large plants couldn't support its weight and snapped like twigs when he grabbed hold. When Jigglypuff awoke the beast lied on the ground, the world of the conscious eluding him for the moment. Wiping her paws of the nuisance Jigglypuff turned to the direction she saw Kirby take off in and could see him, though barely. She was able to spot bright lights far off in the distance and could only guess that Kirby and Shadow Kirby were still doing battle. Although, just before she took off to follow she sensed something amiss behind her and turned to see a large furry fist barreling down on her.

Exactly one minute later…

"Faster, faster!" Yelled Jigglypuff atop her new steed

Pulling slightly on the hairs atop the head of the once raging beast, the now tamed creature had become a makeshift ride for the small puffball. Jigglypuff could have easily curled into a ball and rolled after Kirby, but after showing the furry behemoth who was boss, she now had her own personal horse. Albeit, this horse was about two stories high and covered in fur. If they were to keep this pace it wouldn't take long before Jigglypuff was reunited with the one who had stolen her heart. (Although, in Kirby's place it would be the one thing he would regret stealing.)

* * *

DING! DING! DING! DING! 

"Ladies, gentlemen, and various assortments of animals, we have arrived at our destination. Welcome to Hiehie Village. Please watch your step as you disembark and have a great day." Someone said over an intercom

Usually, the patrons of the train would have flooded out in a frenzy of bodies to get off the train. Today however, there was calm in the middle of the hurricane of passengers. And within this eye were the Smashers, making their trek off of the train.

"Kinda good for once that people appreciate what we do for them." Falco commented as he stepped down from the train

"We didn't stop those bandits for the sake of thanks Lombardi." Marth replied

"Hn…" he muttered, "Still, better than getting shot at after we save an entire city."

"Nana…will you be okay?" Zelda asked, noticing that Nana was still in a sort of daze

"Hmm?" she asked, not hearing her at first

"I asked if you'll be okay?" Zelda repeated, patiently awaiting Nana's answer

"Oh…oh…I'll…be fine." She replied, though it was obvious to Zelda that she would not be until Nana knew that her brother was

The apparent concern for her twin brother was sketched all over the female climber's face and a void was hanging in her heart. Neither sad nor happy, Nana felt nothing, and only her brother's well-being could fill that gap.

"We should find Popo now." She murmured, and quickly took the lead of the group, "Come, let us go." She told all present

"Very well princess, though I do wonder where Popo is located?" he wondered, "It is not like he will simply pop up out of nowhere."

"I'm right here." They heard a voice say

Nana was the first to look forward upon hearing the voice and the void that once filled her heart was almost immediately replaced with a sense of happiness she had not felt in such a long time. Standing a few feet away was the object of everyone's concern.

"Popo!"

Nana streaked across the snow and slammed into her brother with such force she nearly toppled him. Her overwhelming relief for her brother's well-being blinded her to the fact that her crushing hug would do more damage to the male counterpart of the team. But being the brother Popo was he said nothing of the pain, if any, he was feeling.

"Hey Popo, you alright?" Falco asked, Falco being the first of the Smashers to reach Nana and her brother, "Heard you were on the butt end of a butt-whipping." He replied

"Falco!" Zelda scolded

"I'm just kidding." He replied, "'sides, I'm glad to see the little dude's okay."

"I'm fine, thanks." Replied Popo

"No you're not." Nana replied, with mixed emotions of sadness and happiness

"It's only a few broken ribs." He replied to his sister, "And a broken arm, but I'm fine." he told her, but she wasn't having it, even with his haphazard display of his arm that was in a sling

"You shouldn't be up!" she squeaked

"I had to be. I knew you'd be coming and I wanted to be here to greet you." He said, "But I wasn't expecting you to bring so many of the others."

"Well, we were bored and decided to visit ya." Falco replied

"But when we heard of you predicament our aims quickly changed."

"DK is glad little guy okay." Replied DK

"Thanks."

"Well, now that we know you're okay the question that's on our minds is…who did this to you?" Zelda asked

Popo was hesitant to answer Zelda's question immediately. Instinctively he turned his head away, hoping to avoid the question. Zelda quickly noted that as she let the words sink in. Popo looked ashamed, as if the injuries were somehow his fault. Eventually though he responded to Zelda and her inquiry.

"Let's talk to the elders." He replied, letting go of his sister and taking off toward the village

"Popo?" Nana called, but it seemed to fall on deaf ears as Popo continued his trek

* * *

Hiehie Village was a sight to behold. Now not on a technological level as say, of where Falco came from or of splendor as in Marth's home, but the beauty of the village was undeniable. The people of the village lived within a large valley, with a large spring on its northern banks. The constant rising heat from the spring, coupled with the surrounding cold air that blew into the valley created a light layer of fog that permeated the surrounding area. This phenomenon left the valley with a hazy look, and when the sun shown through the valley, the light gave off a mysterious aura. Oddly enough it was because of the fog that the ground of the valley stayed mostly snow free. The hot ground and the warm fog melted much of the snow that fell, creating a very soft earth beneath the feet of those who stepped over it. Thus, the villagers of the Hiehie were able to grow an assortment of different vegetables that would be otherwise impossible to grow anywhere else in the snowy world.

With vegetables growing from the ground, Hiehie village had a diet that consisted of more than fish and other seaworthy creatures and so they also had a powerful trade commodity. Hiehie Village was the center of trade among the other villages in the Nesh region, as well as the home of the Weather Casters. While few in number, the Weather Casters were the most important family clan of all of Nesh. Their abilities, while not hereditary, were still a dime a dozen and only a few people of the village had the talent to use the powers effectively.

"Sir Popo." Called Marth

Popo didn't reply at first so Marth asked again.

"Sir Popo. I have always wondered something. You are the heir to a title known as the 'Weather Casters'." He replied, "Just what are the Weather Casters?" he asked

Popo didn't turn to the prince, but an explanation did follow.

"I'm not completely sure myself. But from what the elders told Nana and I, the Weather Casters have the potential to control the weather." He said

"How is that possible?" Marth asked, "No creature has that kind of power."

"Maybe not control…but I know we can manipulate it." Popo replied

"How so?"

"Well, it's hard to explain, but maybe I can try and make an example." He said, turning around to face Marth

As Popo bent down and picked up a stick, the group stopped and awaited their lecture on the power of the Weather Casters.

"Well, it goes like this." He said, tapping his stick against a chalkboard

"Where'd that chalkboard come from?" Falco asked

"Sorry, my fault." Replied a villager who had just so happened to be pushing a chalkboard along the Smashers' path

"Oh…for a second there I thought we were looking at a plot hole of a story or something."

"As you see here." He said, pointing to a detailed explanation of the Weather Casters and their abilities, "The Weather Casters can emit and control the same type of energy that is emitted by normal weather."

"What, you mean you can control heat and air pressure?" Falco asked

"Sorta. Since small changes in the air can affect the weather, a Weather Caster's body can create changes in the amount of heat around and we have some control over air pressure, watch." He said, placing his hand near the ground

Moments after doing so the ground that Popo's hand was held over began to sink, as if being pushed by Popo's hand without it actually making any physical contact.

"Amazing." Replied Zelda, "I see, you increased the air pressure around you hand and were able to affect the ground beneath you."

"Right." He replied

"But how is that you can control heat as well?" she asked

"The elders say that through chi, one is able to absorb and release heat in quantities that a normal person cannot achieve." Popo said

"Hn…chi, that's just some fancy word for electromagnetism." Replied Falco

"Hmm?" murmured DK, "How's that?"

"Hn. Every living creature gives off an electromagnetic signal, though it usually is pretty weak so you don't really notice. But if you train the right way you can learn to control your body's natural signal. Once you do that you can use that signal to manipulate the electromagnetic waves that are part of the planet itself, since planets give off a signal like this as well."

"So you are saying that chi and this electromagnetic signal are the same thing?" asked Marth

"Basically."

"There is no difference?" Marth asked

"The only difference is how you use it. 'Chi' can be used usually when you want to use stuff like my Fire Bird attack, since I have to focus on heat and stuff. But if you referred to the more scientific way of looking at it you'd probably would lean more towards my Phantasm attack, which is just a boost a speed through forcing energy throughout my body."

"If there is no real difference then why do you refer to them as two different things?" Marth asked

"Well, there's not only chi, but magic, and that's a little harder to explain. It's supposed to be made up of these signals, but because of the stuff you can do with magic you can't just peg is as that." He said, "So magic and chi coincide with one another, but I can never make heads or tails of the stuff."

"You're correct Falco. Magic has an origin that none can truly understand." Zelda replied

"So then, what about psychic powers?" Ness asked

"Hey kid, I don't know enough about that to explain it too ya. You should know any, it's your power." He told him

"Just because I know how to use it doesn't mean I know everything about it." Ness retaliated, "I've tried to ask Mewtwo, but all he says is 'The power of the psychic is a power that comes from within their own psyche and to discover one's own psychic abilities one must discover themselves."

"Sounds like a fancy way of saying he doesn't have a clue." Falco commented

"Yeah, I know."

"Hey, I'm not done yet." Popo said, tapping the chalkboard to gain the groups attention

"Sorry Mister Aisu Kuraimā." They all said

"Good, now listen carefully because this will be on next week's test…never mind, just listen." He said, "Like I was saying, since we can manipulate heat and air pressure, we can manipulate the weather too, though usually no farther than a few feet."

"Wait a moment; I am starting to get it. The ability to absorb heat allows you to cool the air around you and then you use your ability to control the air pressure to condense the water vapor in the air so that you can freeze it, allowing you to use your ice abilities." She explained

"Yeah…something like that." Popo replied

"Seems pretty complicated to me." Replied Falco "It must have taken you two a while to figure all this out."

"Not really." Replied Nana, speaking up for the first time since the conversation began, "Popo and I, we just learned how to do it. It wasn't until later did we figure out just what was happening." She replied

"How did you figure it all out anyway?" Falco asked

"We went to school." He replied

"Oh…I guess so." He replied

When Falco first met the Ice Climbers he wasn't sure as to what to make of them. He knew they were smart but he hadn't known how just how smart they really were. But after coming to their home and see how they were not as 'primitive' as he first thought, his views on the two were beginning to change.

"Now that was a beautiful account of how the Weather Casters can use their powers."

"Bridget?" Popo wondered, looking behind the Smashers to see Bridget and Robert walking over

"Oh yes, we met both Bridget and Robert on the train here, but we lost track of them as we stepped off."

"Sorry dear, but my husband and I had to deal with matters on the train." She replied, "And I'm glad you remember us, your sister didn't seem to." She replied

A blush crept across Nana's face as embarrassment took over, but Popo was quick to come to his sister's aid.

"Well, I barely remember you from that one time when Grandmamma introduced us when we were two." He replied, "I only remembered your names because I remember Grandmamma and you are great friends and she always talks about you." He replied

"Tealeaf, that old girl. I haven't seen her in ages." Bridget said, beginning to reminisce

"I could say the same for me." Replied a voice

"Grandmamma!" Popo and Nana said in unison and looked toward the sky

A shadow soon loomed over the Smashers, causing them all to look toward the sky, to see a strange sight. Descending upon the group was a large bird, red in color, and strong in stature. Sitting near the nape of the large raptor's neck, was a women. Like many of the villagers of Hiehie Village, she work a parka, hers brown in color, with a large red flower sewn into the left side of her hood. Her hood was down, revealing shoulder length grey hair. Her complexion was fair, even with the signs of age across her face, though age didn't seem to slow her down as she jumped down from the large creature before it even had a chance to land and spread her arms out wide.

"Come here you two and give you Grandmamma a hug!" she said and the twins did just that

The three enveloped one another. A feeling of warmth radiated from the three as they shared a moment of family bliss.

"What a warm moment." Zelda replied

"Hn." Muttered Falco, the moment a little too mushy for his tastes

"I'm glad to see you two and I'm really glad to see you two are okay." She replied, "After I heard what happened to you I rushed over here as these old bones could." She said "Popo, what did I tell you about picking fights with people." She said in a scolding manner

"It wasn't my fault Grandmamma, it was…well it…I'm not really sure." He replied

Tealeaf sighed.

"It doesn't really matter." She said, holding Popo tighter, "Grandmamma's just glad you okay." She said, before she turned her attention to the Smashers, "Now then, will you introduce me to you odd friends?" she asked

"Odd?" Falco murmured, "We weren't the ones who just came flying in on a big bird." He said

"Please to meet you Miss." Zelda said, bowing her head in respect

"Please, call me Tealeaf." She said

"Lady Tealeaf, how are you?" Marth asked, stepping forward and taking her gloved hand in his

The prince bowed slightly as he kissed her hand out of respect and the old woman couldn't help but swoon over the compliment.

"Oh, I haven't been called Lady in years!" she squealed

"Don't let it get to you head ya old bird." Bridget quipped

"Bridget, you were always jealous of my beauty." She said, still swooning, "Such a gentleman."

"Ha, ha, ha, ha…" chuckled Falco, "Looks like ya got yourself another fan girl Marthy-boy." He chuckled, until he noticed the large bird that Tealeaf had ridden on was standing over him, staring at him longingly "What's with him?" he asked, feeling his personal space being violated

"Oh, that's Andeana, and he's a she." Tealeaf replied, "And I think she likes you bird man." Tealeaf replied

"You were saying, Falco?" Marth asked, concealing his mirth

"Shut it."

"Great, now we have two old birds trying to get with the younger group." Bridget moaned, "Why don't we just get out of this cold so that we can figure out what has happened to dear Popo, huh?" she asked, "Besides, the treasure has arrived."

"I see." Tealeaf murmured, "Come now everyone."

But before their grandmother could cart them away, Zelda spoke up.

"Actually, we were hoping we could find a guide." She said, referring to the group, "We've lost two of our friends and are trying to find them."

"Huh…lost? Who dear?" Tealeaf asked

"Two small blobs of pink." Falco replied, "One's name Kirby, the living garbage disposal and the other is Jigglypuff, the psycho balloon."

"Falco!"

"What…it's true." He replied, as if this was general knowledge

"That's not the point!" Zelda barked, but quickly reclaimed her cool "It would be nice if we could find someone to guide us through the Nesh wilderness." She explained, though the penetrating glare directed toward Falco never subsided

"Well I suppose I can find someone to guide you." Tealeaf replied, "Come, we'll talk with the others first." She said

"Others?"

"The Chilly Triad."

* * *

As with any congregation of people, as the village was, the people of Hiehie Village had a governmental hierarchy. While the villagers as a whole had their own voice in what laws they obeyed, all final decisions and enforcement of law came down to three wise elders, known as the Chilly Triad. The Chilly Triad governed under a checks and balance principle. While each was powerful in their own right, none had more power over the other three for each of their powers rested upon the decision of the other. Now, while this was not a full-proof governing system, for it was prone to misuse now and again, The Chilly Triad kept order and liberty throughout the village.

Of The Chilly Triad the elder who decided on the laws of the village and how they should be followed went by the name of Maligait. Managing the laws of the village was not the only responsibility that this elder of the Chilly Triad had; her position also gave her control of enforcing the law of the village, thus she as also in charge of the Hiehie Military Force, or the HMF. This was the closest to police that the village had.

Making laws and enforcing them is only part of what makes Hiehie Village so influential. While following doctrine was important, knowing what had to be done beyond what the law dictated was just as important. That is where Piqujait comes in. The second of the Chilly Triad, Piqujait, was in charge of Public Services. From clean water, to trade with other villages, to making sure that each and every villager had their rights as a person of the village protect; Piqujait was there.

The final member of the Chilly Triad, and the more enthusiastic of the bunch, was a man by the name of Tirigusuusiit. Laws must be followed and freedoms must be kept, but when someone stepped over the boundaries and disregarded the law of the land, Tirigusuusiit was there to administer justice upon the wrong-doer. When a crime was committed, the felon was brought before Tirigusuusiit and he or she was judged.

But as said before, none of the Chilly Triad had power over the other, or that was what was decided upon. Whenever a new law was made, Piqujait made sure that it was in interest of the village while Tirigusuusiit made sure that the law didn't contradict any existing laws. If there was need for a new service, or to increase taxes, Maligait observed, to see if a new law needed to be created in order to allow this service to be implemented. Any service created had the potential to be abused, so Tirigusuusiit watched over; he would be there to judge the offender accordingly. Even when a law was broken, no man, woman, or child of the village was truly guilty until all aspects of the case were known. Maligait made sure of this; the law was expresses in its fullest detail. Sometimes, when one is judged, they may be judged unfairly, or if it was necessary to break the law for the better of the village and Piqujait was just the person needed to make that distinction known.

Popo made his way toward the large building that housed the Chilly Triad, called the Great Assembly Hall, which was found in the center of the village. This building was also the central meeting place of the village when assemblies were in session, being they court or otherwise. Nana and the other Smashers were right behind their blue-parka wearing leader as they approached the large building, marveling at its size and splendor. Reaching forward Popo put his arm on the door and tried to push it open, but a sharp pain in his side caused him to falter. The others noticed this and quickly came to his aid, Nana trying to steady him in case he fell.

"I'm fine, really." he replied and tried to push the doors open again, managing to open the rather large doors of the Great Assembly Hall

With a grunt he swung the doors open, but in the process stumbled a little. He was quick to right him and after taking a few breaths continued on his way, the others right behind him. At the present time their were only a few villagers wandering the halls of the assembly hall, each with his or her own minor suggestions or complaints that, while urgent, didn't require the need for the Chilly Triad to become involved. Luckily, apprentices of the Chilly Triad and such were there to help any and all requests that came their way. Through a small hallway they walked until the hallway opened up into a large room. Toward the end of the room stood three individuals, old in age but not in spirit, vigorously arguing with one another over some important matter.

"It'll interfere with trade!" one barked

"No, it will cause a surplus once it takes root. The future outcomes outweigh the present difficulties!" barked another

"It will be vulnerable to abuse unless more enforcement is there!" the third barked

"There they go, always at it." Tealeaf mumbled, "Hello, elders!" she called, trying to gain their attention

The warring elders, their yelling and squabbling drowning out the calm proclamation of Tealeaf, did not hear her call. She sighed, shaking her head in disdain over what she deemed as childish bickering.

"I suppose I will have to do my duty." She mumbled, walking down toward the quarreling trio

"Her duty?" DK asked, wondering what the old human lady's duty could possibly be with these other old human people

"Grandmamma is the Angakkun." Replied Popo matter-of-factly

"Huh?"

"She's a mediator, the Shaman of the village." he told DK, "It's the duty of the elders to govern the whole village, but its the duty of the Angakkun to govern the Chilly Triad." he said

"Casters of the Triad, I beckon you!" Tealeaf called, rousing the Chilly Triad from their feud

Each turned and bowed their heads respectively to Tealeaf's approach, their current argument lost in the presence of the Angakkun.

"Wow, not bad." Falco commented, "Quieted them down in a hurry. Must be good to have such a authority as a grandmother."

"It's okay." Replied Popo, though the sound of his speech would make one think otherwise

"So, what does that make you two?" Falco asked, his curiosity piqued, "Are ya'll mini-shamans or something?"

"No." replied Nana, giggling slightly at Falco's interpretation, "Not quite. But that is sort of the reason why Popo was called here in the first place." she replied

"How so?" Falco asked

In response Nana began to explain.

Meanwhile Tealeaf stopped a few feet in front of the elders, her current mood indistinguishable.

"It is good to see you Angakkun. Did your trip go well?" asked Piqujait

"I do have a name you know, as do you, and I wish you would call me it more often."

"You know the doctrine as well as we and respect must always be paid to the Angakkun from all, as well as the Triad."

"I suppose." Tealeaf replied, "And I wish I could say my trip went perfectly, but I have some troubling news." she said

"Which would be?" asked Maligait

"There has been a travesty. Nell, one of the villages I was suppose to visit on my trip, is gone."

"Gone, gone how?" asked Tirigusuusiit

"I mean it was destroyed. Everything was annihilated."

"What of the villagers? Are they okay?" asked Maligait

"I can't say for certain, but I noticed tracks of both human and livestock leaving the disaster so hopefully the villagers were able to escape whatever befell them."

"Do you think it was Topies that did this?" asked Tirigusuusiit

"No. First of all the village is not close to many mountains for it to be in Topie territory and secondly the Topies, while a dangerous creature are not ones to simply destroy with no reason, especially against a village that was more than capable of defending itself." Tealeaf replied

"A natural disaster then?" asked Piqujait

"No. Mother Nature did not do what I saw. Whoever or whatever did this destruction was not of this region."

"Do you believe it to be a threat to Hiehie?" Maligait asked

"Whatever attacks one of our neighbors is a threat to this village. Maligait bring together the HMF, we will go and search for the reason behind this destruction."

"I see. I will do so soon. But first the matter of young Popo must be addressed."

"Must this be discussed now?" Tealeaf groaned, "Whatever has destroyed Nell could easily attack any of the other villages, especially those that are not as well defended as Nell was."

"You do not to worry, the HMF will see to this, but the matter of young Popo is still a priority, a top priority."

Tealeaf groaned again, but knew that Maligait had a point.

"Very well, but this must be short. The longer we wait the longer this evil has to sow its seeds of destruction." she told them, before turning her attention to Popo and the group, "Popo, it is time for you decision." She said

Popo nodded and began his trek toward his grandmother and the Triad, leaving his sister and the Smashers behind. His sister had been trying to explain the customs and traditions of Hiehie village to the Smashers, explaining about the duties of the Triad and the Angakkun. As Popo walked off, Nana began to finish explaining why the Angakkun was so important and how that related to her and her brother.

"So you see, the Chilly Triad may make most of the decisions, but when all three can't decide on something its up to the Angakkun to settle the three elders so things can get done."

"I guess." replied Falco, trying to wrap his mind around the whole concept, though for him it seemed a little too overly complicated for him, "But I still don't see what that makes of ya'll."

"I cannot believe you do not see it." Marth replied, "It is not that hard to figure out."

"What do you mean pretty boy?" Falco asked

"Would it be that the Weather Casters are tied in with the Triad and the Angakkun?" Marth asked

"Yep." replied Nana

"So that would mean that the Weather Casters are also the heads of the village." Zelda commented, "Thus..."

"Popo's the next in line to be the Angakkun." replied Nana, "And also..."

Upon Popo finally reaching the front of the assembly room Popo stood in front of the elders and his grandmother, and much like his grandmother previously his expression was unreadable.

"Popo, you know what comes next." Tealeaf replied

"I know."

"Then, what is your answer." she asked, "Will you or will you not take the test and activate the Aurorae Polaris?"

"My answer is..."

* * *

Hope you like (though you might hate me for the cliff-hanger) 

Note: Please don't sue me for my 'super bogus physics lesson.' I used as many facts as I could to try and make something close to believable. Let's just say I used artistic liberties when I tried to describe the Ice Climber's powers, as well as Chi. I go deeper into explanation of chi some other time, but just take it as it is. This is a fanfic after all.

Note: Yes. The Ice Climbers refer to their grandmother as 'Grandmamma'.

Note: The names of the elders come from the names of Inuit law

I have used quite a bit of...imagination, in the creation of this story. I hope it goes over well with my readers, but only your reviews can really give me any idea as to how this is going, so review, critic, I can take it, even flames, tell me what you like or dislike about the story.


	11. Influence Part 5

This is where the action picks up and the reader it introduced to a new enemy for the Smashers

Now let me introduce the fifth installment of my third story in Chronicles, Influence Part 5. This time we get some background stories on Shadow Kirby, the Ice Climber's parents, and an explanation on the "Treasure of the Weather Casters."

I am sorry, but before I start this chapter I would like to get a few things across. Mainly the entire Ice Climber relationship debate. As a fanfiction writer I believe they are siblings, but that does not and I put emphasis on the word **_not _**mean that my word is absolute. The same can be said for those who argue they are friends or lovers. I could care less what someone thinks they are, I see them as siblings but I don't push my thoughts of that on others. Whatever they are one this is certain, they are Popo and Nana and they are together. I swear if I hear one more person make a big deal about the Ice Climbers kissing or something along those lines I'll blow my top. I'm saying this because for the sake of my story the Ice Climbers are siblings, but I just don't want to here someone whine about the potential of them being lovers.

The second concern I have is for how people are bad-mouthing some of the characters. I'll admit, I'm not fond of every single one of the Smashers (really only Dr. Mario, everyone else is fine) but I could care less who is in the game as long as its fun and thus I could care less who thinks they should be in a fanfiction. They are there and that is that. I can't stand to hear "What the hell is up with R.O.B." or "Nobody likes the Ice Climbers." or even "What the hell was Nintendo's idea adding Sonic". I plan on having _all _the characters in my story and if you dislike one or another then that is your business and I respect that, but please do not harp on me or others about it, I see enough of that on deviantart and youtube.

I apologize for the rant but I had to get this monkey of my shoulder (could make a pun at Diddy Kong, but I won't) before I could continue with my story. I hope I haven't taken away from the enjoyment of the chapter in any way and if I have I apologize. This is just something that had to be said and if this doesn't apply specifically to you then do not worry, but if you have a gripe with what I have said above you can always use the back button on your computer screen.

Nonetheless enjoy.

* * *

The wind roared and the snow blew wildly as the weather had taken a turn for the worst. The snow beat viciously against the windows of Tealeaf's home, as if wanting to come in and spread its chaotic fury within the warm abode. All the Smashers, as well as Bridget and Robert, were present inside Tealeaf's home, all but Popo, who still had business with the Chilly Triad.

"Haaa..." sighed Zelda dejected as she looked out the window of the living area of Tealeaf's home, "This is not good." she murmured, watching the thrashing snowstorm outside

"Sorry about this, but the storm came out of nowhere." replied Tealeaf, profusely apologizing for the inconvenience, "But with a storm like this it wouldn't be good to go wander the wilderness." she replied, "But don't worry. Since this isn't the cold season this storm shouldn't last for too long, just a freak occurrence.

"No, no." replied Zelda, waving her hand in a dismissive way, "It is not your fault. You may be able to manipulate the weather but you can't predict it." she said, "I'm really worried about Jigglypuff and Kirby though."

"Kirby will be fine." replied Falco, "He's a tough little guy and I'm sure Jiggs ain't gonna go down this easily." he told her

"Maybe, but I would feel better if I knew they were okay."

"The storm should pass by morning, if your friends are as strong as you are they should be fine." replied Bridget

"Quite." replied Robert, "You're friends will be fine and we will be quick to find them when this storm blows over." he said, "Now then, you should not worry yourself so or you will create unneeded stress for yourself."

"I suppose you are right." replied Zelda, trying to calm herself, "Kirby won't go down without getting something in his belly and Jigglypuff..." she replied, thinking on the subject, "You're right, they _will_ be fine." she finally replied

"See, all that worryin' for nothin'." Falco commented, "Now then, when can _we_ eat?"

"Falco, you should be more gracious. We're guests." Zelda scolded

"Fine. If it would be my honor to ask when is the grub coming?"'

"**Falco...**" she growled

"What?"

Flames began to gather in Zelda's palms, but before any fireworks could go off Bridget was quick to interject.

"You know, we did not get to finish our story aboard the train." she said, "With the interruption of those bandits and all we were cut off halfway and since then I have really wanted to finish it."

"Your right, and you were telling it so well, with bold letters and all." Robert commented

"Oh you..." she purred, which was odd since Bridget was not of the feline family, nuzzling his neck

"You know, not to be mean, but I'd rather you not..." began Falco, but before he could get his point across he noticed the look in Zelda's eye, which had slitted out of sheer ferocity

"Never mind."

Luckily for Falco no one noticed either the look of fury upon Zelda's face or the dismissal of his initial protest.

"Now then, where did I leave off?" Bridget wondered

"Part when human guy make cheesy line to human woman." replied DK

"You were listening?" asked Falco

"Taking notes." replied DK, "For Candy." he replied with a grin

"Candy?" he murmured, then vaguely remembered that DK had a girlfriend by the name of Candy, "Oh."

"You are right...on both accounts." she said, grinning a grin toward Tealeaf who immediately caught the hidden meaning behind the gesture

"Hey!" barked Tealeaf defensively, causing everyone to turn in her direction

Feeling that all eyes were on her she went red in the face and was quick to back down.

"Go on." she murmured

"Time went on and Doug...wait a moment, I should be in narrator mode. Excuse me a moment."

**Ahem, as I was saying. Time went on and Douglass became fast friends with Samantha and her father as he recovered from his ordeal. They They shared quite a few happy times together, some of the happiest that Samantha had ever spent in her life. But slowly she realized that she was falling in love with this man and letting such feelings develop between herself and Douglass would be unthinkable. She had a past, a past that he could not know of and the only way she could think of that he wouldn't discover it was that she had to drive him away. It would be painful, for both herself and Douglass, but it would be for his own good.**

**"Where is Samantha?" asked Douglass, having just returned from chopping wood, "There is something I want to tell her."**

**"Proposing yet again?" the father asked**

**"I will make her my wife." Douglass replied, determined  
**

**"Why?" the father asked, "Why do you love my daughter so much?" he inquired, "True, you've been around here for awhile and someone would have to be blind and deaf not to see that you two are developing feelings for each other, but why?"**

**"To tell you the truth, I couldn't give you a definite answer other than spending time with her makes me happy." Douglass replied**

**"I can see that. But let me ask you something. If there was something about her, something horrible, would you stay?"**

**"A crime can be forgiven as long as the person who did the crime truly feels remorse and repents. Whatever she has done has not turned me away from her."**

**"What if it wasn't her crime..." the man murmured**

**"Huh?"**

**"Nothing...she is outside, tending to the herd."**

**Outside Samantha was finishing feeding the caribou, her hand running over the younger of the herd, smiling warmly as they ate vigorously.**

**"Night." replied Samantha**

**"They seem to eat quite a lot when you're around."**

**"Hello Douglass." she replied, quite coldly**

**"What is wrong, have I done something wrong?" he asked, walking up behind her**

**She could feel his breath upon his neck and his warm against her own. She began to melt under his touch and for a moment, she lost herself to him. But she was quick to push back, knowing that these feelings could not fester.**

**"Why must you pester me so!?" she barked, as he tried to wrap his arms around her waist, "I tell you time and time again that I do not share your love! I wish you would just leave me be!" she yelled, pushing him away  
**

**"I know I've been persistent, but I just want you to know that I love you." he said, "More than anyone else."  
**

**"What of that 'angel' you saw?" she inquired, "You would think with all this love you have for me you might call me that?"**

**"I..." he began**

**"She must have been more beautiful than _me_." Samantha commented**

**"Yes...no...this is different." he managed to say**

**"How so?" she asked, "How is it that you have fallen for me but have been stricken by the sight of this 'angel'."**

**Douglass sighed, knowing that no matter how hard he tried he would not be able to convey his feelings to Samantha without hurting her.**

**"Yes...I will not renounce what I saw." he replied, "The beauty I saw was incomparable, but I have denounce other beauties in favor of you." he replied**

**"So, you do not think I am beautiful?" she questioned, "Am I just a peg in your counter, another conquest!?"  
**

**"No...that is not what I meant!" he barked, shocking Samantha somewhat, "I mean..." he murmured, trying to keep himself in check, "You're beauty is something of another definition."**

**"So you have different understandings of beauty, eh?" she inquired, "I am this type of beauty, while this 'angel' is another, much greater, beauty?" she replied, "I now see how you think." she replied**

**A terrible silence filled the air between the two, their hearts aching as they let each others words truly sink in. Eventually though the uneasy silence was broken.**

**"I think you should leave, for good." she told him, her voice devoid of emotion**

**"Is that how you truly feel?" he asked, masking his hurt under a guise of inquiry  
**

**"Yes." she replied, feeling a well of emotions rise in her but forcing herself to keep her voice low and even toward him, "To have a man constantly professing himself at your feet. To never have him understand that you do not return his feelings, that truly angers me." she she replied, "Just go away and never bother me again."  
**

**"If that is the case, then I will leave, by morning." he replied, "Though know this, no matter what may happen, I still love you."**

**"Then it will be an empty love." she growled**

**With a sigh he turned and headed away to his room to pack, leaving Samantha out in the cold, to let the chilled air cool her anger. But it was not anger that was in the heart of Samantha, but sadness, as she let out a stifled cry of sorrow.**

**"This...is for the best..." she choked, her emotions getting the best of her, "He cannot know. He must live his life while I live mine, never knowing who I truly am." she told herself**

"Oh my..." murmured Zelda, "To think that two people could just lose their love for one another just like that." she said, "Shows that life does not always go as one may envision." she commented

**"Yes, even I will admit, this is not the part of the story I enjoy."** Bridget replied, **"Though it must be told for the rest to be understood."** she murmured

"Would you like me to finish?" Robert asked, his low soothing voice calming his distressed wife

**"If you wish."** she replied, **"Let me move out of Narrator Mode first."** she replied, "There...wow, you were right dear, Narrator Mode is quite difficult."

"See, but don't worry, I've been practicing for this for a while now and besides, I do enjoy telling the next part of this story."

"That is because there is a lot of fighting, right?" Bridget replied, questioning her husband

"I would not be a wolf I didn't enjoy a good fight now and again." he chuckled

"Ugh, _males_."

"Okay then, let us continue." he replied, moving into Narrator Mode

_When daylight approached Douglass honored his word and had bid a farewell to the inn keeper and his daughter, though no words of a heartfelt goodbye traveled between the man and woman. Seeing as there was nothing left to say Douglass took his, going off to the next village to try and discover his fate._

_Feeling as if she was finally safe she let herself go in her room, her tears streaking down her face as she let the full flood of emotions within her come pouring out like a dam bursting. However she didn't have much time to sulk in her room for only a few hours after Douglass's departure the village was stricken by a dastardly force. A group of bandits swarmed the unsuspecting village, toppling carts and people alike. The attacking bandits seemed to be a roving gang looking for food and supplies, seeing such a small village as a perfect target for such._

_The villagers fought back valiantly but alas, they were quickly overtaken by the superior numbers of the bandits and led to the center of town. Wailing cries of disdain and fear ushered from the mouths of the herded villagers, but they were quickly quieted by the bandits' forceful actions.  
_

_But as the bandits finished rounding up the villagers it came to a shock to for the abused townspeople that the bandits were not attacking the village because they needed food and supplies, but because they were looking for someone that was rumored to being hiding out there. The bandits demanded that someone named Carmelo show himself of they would start killing off villagers, starting with the children. This pained the villagers, who swore they had never heard of man by the name of Carmelo. However, the man that the villagers were speaking of was skillfully hiding with a secret room contained within the inn of the town. Within the room sat the man known as Carmelo and one other, a woman by the name of Samantha, caught in a heated debate as to what they should do next.  
_

_"Father, you can't..."_

_"No...I knew this day would come eventually. No matter how hard you try you can never escape from your own past, though I was hoping __you could escape mine." he said, "I wish you had gone with that boy, now you're caught up in this."_

_"I could never leave you father." she replied_

_"You may regret that decision." he told her_

_Some time had went by and the patience of the bandits had run dry. A young girl was pulled from the group and thrown to the ground, weapons pointed dangerously at her. The leader of the bandits swore that if this Carmelo did not come out in the next ten seconds then the little girl would die._

_"Animals..." murmured Carmelo_

_The man knew he had no choice in the matter. He had to show his face or the girl would surely die. But before he could make his way out of the inn he felt a sharp pain on the back of his head. The world around him went dark as he hit the floor, though before consciousness completely left him he could here the soft voice of his daughter._

_"I'm sorry father, truly sorry."_

_Back outside with those despicable bandits, one of them was poised to strike down the young innocent young human girl, that was until 'she' made her appearance. Wielding two large mallets and donning a hood that veiled her face, a female climber made her appearance._

_"Who are you?" the leader of the bandits inquired, "Where's Carmelo!?" he demanded_

_"Carmelo is dead." replied the climber, her voice even and direct, "But I'm here to take the place of the man." she said_

_"You?"_

_"Yes. Whatever Carmelo has done no longer applies to him, so I am willing to take on anything he's responsible for." she said, "I will not fight, as long as you spare the villagers." she said, proving her point by dropping her mallets  
_

_"So Carmelo's dead, huh?" murmured the leader, "You know, I never heard of Carmelo having any relatives though." he said, a strange grin growing on his face_

_The veiled climber noticed this but did nothing to react to such a strange occurrence._

_"Well..." he began, "Other than the fact that I'm his brother, Damien." the bandit replied_

_The female climber visibly flinched and the grin on the leader of the bandits grew wider._

_"But I did hear that Carmelo for a moment, Carmelo had been engaged, though I can't say for sure. He was very good at hiding up until now."  
_

_The female climber slowly took a defensive stance._

_"And if you are a 'relative' then you could possibly be her." he thought, "Or maybe..."  
_

_"Y-You're wrong." she replied, trying to keep her monotonous speech, but the bandit caught her stutter_

_"Really? Well then, if you really aren't, but are willing to take on Carmelo's consequences then I have only one thing to say..." he began, his grin growing wild, "Kill her, and the villagers."_

_"Wait! I said I wouldn't fight back!" she barked, "They shouldn't be involved in this!"_

_"They are involved." the leader said, "I know that Carmelo is hiding in this village and that these villagers are hiding him, just as you are." he said, "And since neither of you want to tell me I'll kill everyone and destroy the village. We'll eventually find him. Dead or alive."_

_"Bastards!" she roared, moving for her mallets _

_"Too slow." he guffawed, raising his spear up above the little human child_

_The vile man aimed to bring his spear down upon the child's head, but luckily he was stopped before he could perform the despicable act_

"How come?" asked Ness, the suspense of the storytelling getting to him

"Well, well. Seems like someone is actually interested."Bridget commented, interrupting her husband,"From you're earlier reaction I came to think that you thought was story was too romance heavy." she chuckled

"Well...in the beginning it was..." Ness murmur, knowing he was contradicting himself, "But now...can you finish, please?"

_"Well, after a reply like that I can't see why I shouldn't...unless someone else would like me to stop?"_ Robert asked around

Everyone in the room seemed intently interested in the story being told, even Falco, though it was hard for one to tell with the fact that he was 'asleep' in the corner.

_"Well...?"_ Robert asked Falco, knowing full well he was awake

"I couldn't care less." he mumbled, feigning fatigue, "Go ahead, finish."

_"Right."_ he replied, grinning, _"Well then, where was I..."_ she murmured, _"Ah yes..."_

_Before the wicked Damien could bring down his wrath upon the innocent human e a great storm appeared suddenly. The sharp, gusting wind washed over the village in seconds, the villagers and bandits have little time to shield themselves as they saw the gust of cold wind coming, along with a booming voice that none could ignore._

_"GREAT WHITE SQUALL!"_

_Everyone around was blinded by the sudden gust of ice and wind, though the resounding cries of the bandits being attacked by something could be heard within the chaos._

_"What's going on!?" roared the leader of the bandits, though his attempts at calling his men were useless_

_The storm had only lasted moments though, for as quickly as it had come it had vanished, revealing but one man still standing. Sheer cold flowed about him, but even through the icy wind, his face was unmistakable to the villagers._

_"It's that Douglass." replied many of the villagers, their words intermingling with one another, each shocked and relieved at the arrival of Douglass, mostly because to their knowledge they never knew that Douglass was a Weather Caster  
_

_"A weather caster?" murmured the leader, "Who are you and why are you interfering in things that don't concern you?" the leader demanded_

_"You're attacking innocent people." Douglass replied, his fist clenched tight in anger, his eyes glaring daggers at the bandit leader "Whether or not these people are involved with your problems should not give you the right to punish them. If you were a real climber, a real man, then you'd deal with your problems personally instead of dragging others into them."_

_Douglass's comment stung, but Damien did not let it show, instead letting a constrained smile appear on his face._

_"Oh really." he chuckled lowly, "Then I hope that you have no regrets..." the bandit leader said, "...because your need to be the hero will be you death."  
_

_The man said not a word, his glare never wavering for a moment._

_"Men!" he barked, and at his command, more bandits came from out of the woodwork, stepping out from behind buildings, effectively surrounding the lone climber, "Heh, heh, heh." he laughed menacingly, believing he had the upper hand, "You sentenced yourself to death the moment you decided to meddled in things that you had no reason too. For you see, a don't need to prove that I am a man to you when I have others who will do the work for me. I hope you have some sense of accomplishment as my men rip you apart." he told the climber, "Kill him." Damien ordered  
_

_A resounding battle cry from the group of men initiated their attack, all charging at once, weapons held high, ready to bring them down upon the lone climber in one fell swoop._

_"Did you forget I was here!" barked the veiled woman, already upon the bandit leader, both mallets poised for attack  
_

_"Ah yes, you." the leader chuckled, bringing his spear to the ready, "You are mine."_

_"My words exactly." replied the woman, swinging one of her mallets down upon the leader, though he was quick to block her attack_

_She bounced off and ducked low, trying to knock the man's legs from under him, but he blocked again, stabbing his spear into the ground to stop the blow_

_He sent a kick her way, aimed to back her away, for he knew that with all his strength and skill, she had speed over him, a lot of speed._

_But as mentioned, her speed allowed her to back away from the blow quicker than Damien could anticipate, where she followed up with a wide arc swing of her left-handed mallet. Damien moved away, but by using the momentum of her first strike, the climber was able to swing with her right mallet, toward his head. Damien blocked, but could not block the next blow she threw as him, as she pushed away the moment her mallet made contact and kicked his legs from under him._

_"Double Mallet Boomerang!" she yelled, throwing both her mallets at the the man_

_The mallets spun with incredible speed and precision, quickly homing in on the downed bandit. But Damien proved to have much skill of his own, as he quickly rose to his feet and deflected the two mallets, sending them back to their thrower._

_"You're not bad." he said, oddly grinning at her, as she caught her weapons in mid-air "If I didn't know any better I'd have to say those are Carmelo's moves, and his mallets." he replied, "But I shouldn't be too surprised, you are his 'relative' after all."_

_The woman growled and advanced, her mallets trailing behind as she approached. The leader was the first to strike, stabbing forward with his spear. The woman sidestepped and tried to get in close, but the leader reached out and grabbed the woman, throwing her to the ground hard. He tried to finish her off, stabbing down once again, but she rolled away from the blow and hopped up to her feet, sending a kick toward his ribs. Letting go of his spear he crotched down slightly and blocked the blow with his arm before sending a punch her way. She hopped away, avoiding the blow, but as she back away he threw his spear at her. She barely dodged the strike, but by doing so she was left wide open. _

_POW!!_

_The punch he sent her way smashed in to the woman's jaw, nearly shattering it on impact. To say the least she was quite surprised at the power he possessed as she spiraled away from him and hit the ground, hard.  
_

"Oh...that sounds like it hurt." replied Ness

_"Oh, it did."_ sounding as if he had first hand encounter with such a blow, _"But this climber would not be taken down so easily. She rose to her feet and defiantly stood against the leader of the bandits"_

_"I will crush you." replied the woman, "Completely." she added_

_"Big words. Can you back them up?"_

_"Watch me!" she barked, charging him once more_

"Hey, what about the guy...you know, the Douglass guy?" Ness asked

"Ness, quiet, let the talking wolf finish." Marth scolded

_"No, no. That's fine."_ replied Robert, _"I do suppose I've been focusing on the unnamed female climber." _he replied, _"But do not worry, the story will involve him quite soon."_he said, _"Now then, let us move on."_

However, before Robert could continue with the tale a man burst into Tealeaf's home.

"Angakkun!"

All heads turned to the man who, under the gaze of everyone in the room, bowed his head slightly, a wave or humbleness flowing over him.

"Yes?" Tealeaf asked, prompting the man to speak

"Angakkun." he replied, "Something urgent has happened."

"Which would be?"

"Well...villagers, from other villages are here."

"Okay...but what could be so urgent about that?" she asked

"Maybe it would be better if I showed you." he replied, "Please, follow me."

She nodded and preceded to head out of the door, though she was quickly followed by the others.

"Please, stay, this should only take a moment." she replied

"I don't think so." replied Zelda, "An ominous wind has begun to blow in and I believe we will all be involved in its arrival, especially young Popo.

"Huh?"

Bewildered the Smashers and even Tealeaf herself followed Zelda outside into the freezing blizzard and when they reached the center of the village, the bewilderment that prevailed the group grew. Within the village a throng of lost travelers wandered about, many huddled together to escape the cold, others simply looking lost.

"What...what is this?" Tealeaf gasped, flabbergasted by the throng of people

"Are you the Angakkun of this village?" asked a man who looked to be in his earlier 40's who had walked up to Tealeaf

"Yes." she replied

"We are sorry that we just barged in, but we haven't a choice." he replied

"Why, what is wrong? Why aren't you all at your homes?"

"To put it simply, we haven't homes to return to."

Tealeaf's eyes widened slightly to this response, but soon they lowered into a look of profound thought.

"Were they destroy, utterly annihilated?" she inquired

"Yes, how did you know?"

"I recently discovered that the village of Nell was obliterated. Do you know what destroyed your village?"

"Yes...though I still don't believe it." he replied

"What was it?"

"Not what, but who." the man replied, "Or maybe it was a what and a who."

"Just tell us already." replied Falco, fed up with dancing around the subject

"Falco!" barked Zelda, "Can't you understand these people are troubled!" she scolded, "Can't you be a little more considerate."

"Oh, I understand." replied Falco, "But the longer he takes to tell us what happened the longer its gonna take for us to help him." he replied

Zelda's eyes widened at that remark, leaving her speechless. Falco was more in tune with the situation that she had been. True, he sounded blunt and methodical, but he feelings had been in the right place.

"Thank you." the man replied, "And you are right...the trouble has already befallen us, the only choice we have is to try and explain and hope that other villages don't receive the same fate."

"Then go ahead." replied Falco

"Are village was attacked...by a little girl...and a large floating eye." the man replied, albeit with some difficulty

"Okay..." murmured Falco, "That's a new one."

"I know, I hardly believe it myself, but trust me this is what I saw decimate our village."

"Okay then...if that's the case, can you tell us anything about the little girl and...well...the eyeball?" Falco asked

"Everything happened so quickly, there isn't much I can tell you."

"First, let's fine you a warm place to sit." replied Tealeaf, "The fact that you and your village had to trek through this terrible storm warrants you to be taken care of."

"Thank you, truly thank you Angakkun." he replied

* * *

It took some time, but eventually Tealeaf, with the assistance of the Smashers and the residents of Hiehie villager were able to find at least a place to sleep for the many villagers that had searched for refuge from the storm. The smashers could feel the prevailing dread of the villagers as they rested their weary bodies, some even crying out to the heavens, asking why their beloved village had been demolished. Within Tealeaf's home, the man, who was later to be known as Karlik, the leader of the village, with his son Issac were seated in a warm chair near a warm fire.

"So...?" began Zelda, hoping to somehow grasp what the man was trying to tell them, "Just what happened?"

Karlik sighed, feeling the memories of the event begin to overtake him. His hand slowly washed over his son's spiky head of hair and the action seemed to relax him. He looked up to the room, his eyes full and determine and slowly began to spin his tale of devastation and uncertainty.

"I guess it all started when I was closing up shop for the night. I am...was...the blacksmith of our village, as well as being the person all could come to for help." he replied, "I had just finished selling an icepick to one of my customers and bidding her a fond farewell when I heard an explosion in the distance. Curious I went outside to see what had happened. It seemed that many of the other villagers had had the same idea, for their were quite a few outside. That's when I noticed a strange aura...it was black, horribly black, and seemed to be alive, slithering across the snow that covered the ground." he said, "Unsure of what this meant I told Issac to stay in the shop while I and a few others decided to investigate. However, before we could do anything a strange 'light' fired forth, decimating a nearby building." he said, his voice wavering as the confusion of the event came back to him, "Panic erupted and villagers ran for safety, all while more of these beams of dark light ravished out village. Knowing that my shop would be next I turned, ready to run, but it was obliterated before I could take even two steps." he replied, "I thought for sure that my son was..." he murmured, unable to finish, though the Smashers knew what he meant, "But luckily..." he replied, his hand gripping his son's shoulder in relieved manner, "...my son doesn't always listen to me and had already sneaked outside to see what was happening." he chuckled slightly, "But more explosions came, leaving me with no choice but to join my fellow villagers and make a run for it with my son."

"You guys didn't try to fight back?" Falco asked

"We didn't have time. By the time anyone could even think of raising arms against these demons, they were gone, and so was much of our village. None of the buildings survived the onslaught, and many of our livestock were lost in the wilderness. Luckily we were able to scrape together enough of our resources to make the trek here.

"I guess you guys were lucky she decided to book it before ya'll could fight back." Falco replied

"No...she didn't leave because she feared an attack. She left because she was bored with us. I believe if she had wanted to, she could have demolished every last one of us without breaking a sweat.

"That's despicable!" barked Marth, "She simply was having fun with you, at the expense your of lives!"

"Yes." Karlik murmured, a slight feeling of shame washing over his features

"Don't feel that way." replied Zelda, sensing the man's change of mood, "You did what you could." she replied

"But my village was destroyed, and I could do nothing to stop it!" she barked, but then stopped himself as he brought his anger under control

"But you're alive." she replied, "I can't say what you're future may hold, but I do know that as long as you're alive there is a chance for you to recover what you've lost." she said

"I suppose..." he muttered, wondering if her words had meaning

"That does it, the HMF is moving out first thing in the morning, whether or not Popo has activated the Aurorae Polaris."

"Grandmamma, any clue to who that girl might be?" Nana asked

"No dear, I can't fathom anyone who would do this." Tealeaf replied, "This is new to me."

* * *

"Okay...dis is a new one fa me."

Those words came from a bewildered Chinook, leader of the bandits, as he stared wide-eyed at the strange 'visitor' of his secret fortress, where he and his bandits lived. The large fortress and the village that surrounded it stood near the borders of the Nesh region, its imposing figure hidden within a large forest.

After the defeat of the bandits at the hands of the Smashers, the bandits quickly made their way back to base to regroup and plan for the next strike. It had taken some time for them to return home, due to the storm that had blown in and they were only just getting back and just meeting up with a little girl dressed in a jet black parka with moon white hair sitting atop his counsel table. But that wasn't the strangest sight. It was the large eyeball floating next to her. It's large, violet-eyed gazed pierce the souls of Chinook and the bandits that had followed him to the counsel chamber. Sakhalin stood at Chinook's right while Malamute at his right, each with wide...well...wide-eyed expressions at the wide eye staring back at them.

"Askin' how ya got in wouldn't really matter cause ya are already in." Chinook replied, "So da better question is, _what_ are ya doing here?"

The little girl smiled wickedly, a smile that gave the three men a bad feeling.

"Have you guys ever fought with Mother Nature?" she asked, chuckling wickedly

* * *

And there we go, another chapter down. More answers are coming in later chapters so continue to tune in, you won't be disappointed.


	12. Influence Part 6

Now we get to see what Kirby has been up to and begin to decipher what is going on. Have a fun time reading.

* * *

"Jigglypuff...stop." commanded the pink rider of the large furred beast

The large yeti-like stopped in its tracks while the pink balloon known as Jigglypuff looked out to a what appeared to be an abandoned village. The buildings were decrepit, years of abandonment showing their signs in the way of cracked walls, discarded debris, and overturned sleds. The pink Pokemon searched around the village, swearing she had seen Kirby and his doppelganger fly over in this direction. But strangely enough she heard no sounds of battle, which was odd considering who Kirby was. As she grew closer to the village she looked about, scooping the area from atop her tall two-legged ride and yet saw nothing. That was until one of the homes nearby exploded into a storm of splintering wood. As the wood flew through the air a pink blob joined the aged lumber. The Star Warrior known as Kirby careened through the flying debris, catching himself mid-flight, landing, and sliding to a stop on the icy ground.

"Kirby!" Jigglypuff squealed in delight, waving frantically to try and gain his attention

The Pokemon was elated that she had finally caught up with the wily Star Warrior after chasing so diligently after him. But before she raced off to be with the one she wanted she looked back and noticed a storm had formed, far off from where she was at. It was at that time that she realized just how far away from the train she had traveled and she wondered if the other Smashers were okay. She hadn't want to leave, but when the talking wolves told her they'd be okay, coupled with her worry over Kirby, she couldn't help herself. Now that she had actually found Kirby she felt guilty, hoping that the others wouldn't be mad when they got back.

"Kirby!" she called again, turning back toward her pink Romeo, waving even harder than before

"Huh?" wondered Kirby, having finally noticed Jigglypuff

"Gotcha!" yelled a voice and before Kirby knew it a black 'foot' collided with his face

The impact was incredibly strong, sending the pink Star Warrior spiraling away and into a crumbling building. The building, weakened by years of erosion and neglect, collapsed when Kirby smashed into it, burying the Smasher in wood and snow.

"Kirby!" she squealed in shock, hopping down from her mount and racing over to the Kirby and his attacker

"Huh?" mumbled the darker one, noticing Jigglypuff for the first time

As she bounded over the dark doppelganger could feel his body tense. His breathing increased and his stomach filled with butterflies. He even noticed one fly out of his gaping mouth, but he was quick to suck it back up. He began to sweat and his heart rate went up. He was so mesmerized by the pink Pokemon's approach he never bothered to move out of the way when she launched a powerful punch to his small body.

_POW!_

The dark copy was popped into the air, by the attacks surprising strength, though Jigglypuff didn't bother to finish up, as she was too worried over Kirby's safety to bother with the dark creature. Instead she continued on leaving the shadowy Kirby to fall to ground a few moments after her attack while she searched for Kirby amidst the rubble of the downed building.

"Jiggly...!" she squealed, grabbing debris and throwing it away as she tried to uncover her Kirby

Shadow Kirby recovered quickly, the palm of his...palm, rubbing against the spot where Jigglypuff hit him. He was perplexed, but not because he had actually been attacked by Jigglypuff, but for the effect that the blow had on him. While the attack hadn't hurt very much, the nervous feeling that he had when he first saw her only escalated. Her paw had been so soft and warm and even though the blow had done some damage he felt excited rather than pained.

"Ugh..." came a groan from beneath a wooden plank

"Jigglypuff...!" gasped Jigglypuff, grabbing hold of the plank and throwing it away to reveal Kirby underneath, "Kirby!" she squealed happily, lunging at Kirby and latching onto him in a grand hug

"Please...let go..." murmured Kirby, vainly trying to push Jigglypuff off of him, but failing, "I want food..." he muttered

"Kirby okay, Kirby okay!" she squealed ecstatically, "Jigglypuff was worried." she told him

Kirby managed to stand and in the process pull away from Jigglypuff as she released her grip from the Star Warrior.

"What are you doing here?" he asked, "Where's the others?"

"The train." replied Jigglypuff, "Jigglypuff leave to find Kirby."

"Oh..." murmured Kirby, "Everyone okay?" he asked

Jigglypuff shrugged, which was quite the feat for the small Pokemon since, like Kirby, she did not possess shoulders.

"Who that?" Jigglypuff inquired, referring to Shadow Kirby who at the moment was still in a daze

"Hmm...?" he murmured, bringing his palm to what would constitute as a chin in order to think

Kirby wasn't exactly sure how to answer that question. The dark persona known as Shadow Kirby was technically Kirby, and yet he was something else entirely. He wasn't particularly dark, except for his mysterious ways, the doppelganger helping Kirby out at the most random times when the Mirror World was threatened and even volunteering to protect it in Kirby's absence. Kirby couldn't understand that aspect of his personality for the life of him, which was odd since at one point it was a part of him.

"That's...uh..." Kirby began, trying to word his answer carefully, "Well you see...there is this mirror..." he began

Jigglypuff nodded in understanding.

"Then this bad Meta Knight came and cut it up, and me too." he replied

Jigglypuff nodded in understanding.

"When that happened the mirror split up and me too." he replied

Jigglypuff nodded in understanding.

"So basically, there's like five of me." he replied, "He's one of me."

Jigglypuff began to nod in understanding, but stopped, thought about what Kirby said, smiled, then fainted.

"Jigglypuff!" Kirby squealed in shock

"Hey, what did you do!?" barked Shadow Kirby, breaking from his trance when he notice Jigglypuff faint

"I didn't do anything!" Kirby barked back, "She just fell." he replied, "She does this from time-to-time, but I can never figure out why?" he replied, thinking back

"Move! I'll help her!" Shadow Kirby said, bounding over to the fallen Jigglypuff

"Wait a min..." Kirby began, but was quieted by a kick from Shadow Kirby

Kirby went soaring and smashed once again into an abandoned building a few yards away.

_CRASH!_

With Kirby dealt with Shadow Kirby had all the time in the world to tend to the fallen Pokemon. Or he would have had he not been interrupted by the loud roar of the of Jigglypuff's personal hairy steed.

_Braaaaaaaaaaauuuuuuuggghhhh!!_

The heavy stomps of the hairy beast shook the ground as it barreled its way over to Shadow Kirby, believing that Kirby and his dark personality had done something to Jigglypuff. Shadow Kirby glowered at the advancing beast, moving forward a few feet so that Jigglypuff wouldn't be hurt by the charging animal. Pulling back its paw the beast brandished it claws and then swung its arm in a mighty arc directed toward Shadow Kirby. Shadow Kirby stood his ground though, his glare never wavering for a moment.

_KER-POW!!_

The impact of the blow caused the snow in the area to shoot outwards, clouding everything in the immediate area in a blanket of white. For a few moments everything was quiet, until a sharp cry permeated through the falling snow. The large beast reeled back, gripping its claw in agony, howling wildly. As the snow settled it could be seen that Shadow Kirby had crouched down, spikes jutting from every corner of his body, creating a very effective countermeasure to the hairy beast's claw swipe.

"You're loud and annoying." replied Shadow Kirby, the spikes retracting back into his body, "Time to teach you to heel."

With a growl the temperature around Shadow Kirby began to increase, the snow at his feet melting as he apparently heated up. The hairy beast backed away, still clutching its wounded paw, watching as Shadow Kirby erupted into a ball of flames.

"Goodbye." replied Shadow Kirby, before launching himself like a fiery rocket toward large beast

Disregarding its injured paw the hairy behemoth launched another punched to try and smash Shadow Kirby into pieces, but the nimble little fireball dodged the claw swipe and attacked the beast while it was open.

_FAWHOOSH!_

A torrent of flames enveloped the beast as Shadow Kirby smashed into its gullet, the force of the blow pulling the snow beast into the air. Consciousness quickly left the beast as the force of the blow rippled through its entire body. As the beast fell over Shadow Kirby extinguished the violent flames flowing about him, leaving him his normal grey self.

"That was easy." he commented, just as the beast hit the snowy ground

A column of snow rose up from the creature's heavy impact, snow flying ever which way, much of it covering the hairy behemoth, extinguishing its flames with the cold exterior. With his deed accomplished Shadow Kirby turned back to the fallen Jigglypuff, the Pokemon still lying about in a semi-conscious state. Waddling over he scooped her up into his grip, captivated at the sight before him. He didn't know why but he was drawn to the Pokemon, which was odd for him especially since he had never seen her before. Well technically that wasn't the truth. He knew of Jigglypuff from Kirby's memories before he had been split up, but for him himself, this was the first time he had ever met Jigglypuff in person.

"Why do I feel so weird?" he wondered, "Maybe she can tell me." he thought, trying to rouse her

Light began to enter her eyes as the balloon Pokemon began to regain consciousness. With the world coming into view around her she tried to remember just why she had fainted in the first place. She remembered finding Kirby, her happiness going up a few notches at that point. Then she remembered seeing that doppelganger, which was suppose to be Kirby, or a part of Kirby...and there were others. Upon coming to this realization she chuckled in her head, finally remembering why she had fainted. As consciousness came to her she could feel someone carrying her and saw a large circular object in front of her. At first she thought it was Kirby, finally realizing his love for her and preparing to declare said love. However, as the round object in front of her came into view she realized that it was not Kirby, but his other side.

"Hey, you...err...Jigglypuff, right?" he asked as she came too

"Jiggly..." replied Jiggly, "Yeah." she murmured, sliding from Shadow Kirby's grasp and standing upon her own two feet

"Oh...who are you?" he asked, "I know you, but I don't know you." he replied

Jigglypuff looked at him as if he had grown three heads.

"Huh?" she wondered

"Uh...I mean, I remember you from Kirby...but..._I_ don't know you." he replied

"Jiggly...?" she wondered, trying to piece together what he was saying, "Wait, you other half of Kirby." she replied

"Yeah...though I don't want to." he replied

"Huh?"

"Well..." he began, but before he could reply he was interrupted by a fearsome sounding battle cry

"Hyah!" they heard, turning to see Kirby jumping into the air and toward the two, his Final Cutter Blade in hand, glistening in the moonlight, "Move Jigglypuff!" he yelled, bringing his blade down upon Shadow Kirby

Jigglypuff hopped away, allow free range for the pink Star Warrior. Kirby slammed his blade down hard upon Shadow Kirby, but the powerful grey puffball quickly blocked, taking the blow with his arms. After making some distance Jigglypuff noticed that the large beast she had been riding was out like a light and from the looks of things he was rather burnt. She wondered if Shadow Kirby had anything to do with it. She turned back tot he battle, watching as the dark copy jumped back after pushing Kirby off of him. Kirby growled when realized how Shadow Kirby had pushed away from his blade, seeing that Shadow Kirby's arms had curved and become as hard as steel, giving him effective blade arms.

"Hey, I was talking before you barged in!" barked Shadow Kirby, "You shouldn't attack when people...err...a Pokemon and a dark version of a Star Warrior are trying to talk!" he yelled

"I was eating before you attack me on the train!" Kirby barked back, "So meh!" he said, sticking his tongue out at Shadow Kirby

"Grrr!" growled Shadow Kirby

With a short hop he began to spin and raced toward Kirby. As he did so, snow began to accumulate around his body until he had become a very large snowball on a crash course toward Kirby. Kirby jumped away to avoid, diving to the side, but the snowball proved to be adept at turning and twirled to the side, rolling even faster toward the retreating puffball. Kirby bounced to and fro to try and get out of the raging snowball's path, but Shadow Kirby was on him as if he knew what Kirby was going to do before Kirby did it. Kirby ended up bouncing back too quickly and tripped, sliding along the snowy ground, out of control. Kirby only barely got to his feet, as he dug into the snow, but by then it was too late. The giant snowball smashed into him and knocking him skyward. Kirby spiraled upward before gravity started to take effect and drag him down, the giant snowball ready to finish the job. But before Shadow Kirby could smash into Kirby again he was stopped by another spinning puffball.

_BAM!!_

With the force of a cannonball Jigglypuff slammed into the rolling snowball, knocking Shadow Kirby from its cold confines. Shadow Kirby bounced off a nearby crate before hitting the ground hard, skidding back along the snowy earth. As she pulled out of the Rollout Jigglypuff watched as Kirby fell, quickly flying over to her falling beloved.

"Jiggly got Kirby, Jiggly got Kirby!" she proclaimed, trying to catch Kirby, but...

_WHAM!!_

A nice Kirby shaped hole was left in the snow about five inches away from Jigglypuff.

"Oops?" she murmured, before looking down at Kirby, "Kirby okay?"

Deep within the hole Kirby gave her a look and that look was all the answer Jigglypuff needed. With a sigh Kirby floated out of the hole and landed nearby, brushing snow from his body.

"Jigglypuff follow Kirby for a long time." she replied, "Not gonna let other Kirby hurt Kirby." she replied

"Uh...thanks..." he replied

"But why other Kirby want to hurt Kirby in first place?" she asked

"Don't know but..."

"Hey!" barked the voice of Shadow Kirby, "We're not done here!" he yelled at Kirby

Jigglypuff and Kirby turned to Kirby's dark counterpart, confusion painted on their faces.

"And as for you..." murmured Shadow Kirby, referring to Jigglypuff, glaring at the balloon Pokemon, "You're beautifully awesome!" he replied, giving her wide smile and a thumbs up, which was rather weird since he didn't possess opposable thumbs

Jigglypuff did a double take after that exclamation and her jaw dropping slightly as she stared as Shadow Kirby with more bewilderment than before.

"Crazy Kirby." she thought

"Why are you here?" Kirby asked, "Why do you want to fight me?"

"I told you." replied Shadow Kirby, "To be free, of you." he replied

"Huh?"

"To be free. I don't want to be you...I want to be me."

"Huh?"

"All I need to do is...take it." he replied, "That's what _it_ told me to do."

"Huh?"

"Once I take it, then I'll be free." Shadow Kirby replied, "When I'm free, I can do anything I want...anything." he replied, winking at Jigglypuff

Jigglypuff felt an unusual cold feeling run through her body as Shadow Kirby winked at her.

"I'm gonna beat you." Shadow Kirby said, his body changing "There's no way I can lose." he replied, his soft exterior morphing into a much harder material, "I'm stronger than you..." he said, his body beginning to grow in size, "I am you dark side..." he replied, "I know every bad thought you have."

"Liar!"

"Huh?" murmured Shadow Kirby

"Kirby is not bad, Kirby good. Kirby not you, Kirby not dark." she replied, her words confident and unwavering

"Heh..." chuckled Shadow Kirby, "Don't tell me you've never seen him...evil?" he asked, "You have to remember. Shadow Star." he said

Jigglypuff froze up upon hearing that name.

"Remember?" he asked

Jigglypuff bit her lip as thoughts of the last time she saw the Shadow Star entered her mind. In a desperate bid to stop the giant robot sent after the Smashers Kirby resorted to using the Shadow Star, a more powerful Air Ride than his Warp Star. But by using such an Air Ride Kirby was affected by its influence and turned into something that Jigglypuff feared above all else. Kirby wasn't himself when he rode that Air Ride and Jigglypuff never wanted to see that version of Kirby ever again.

"Kirby...Shadow Star controlled Kirby. Not Kirby fault." she defended

"No..." replied Shadow Kirby, his transformation coming to its end, "The Shadow Star doesn't control, it just let's out the wickedness in whoever rides it." he replied, "It let out me."

Jigglypuff gasped! It had to be a lie, there was no way her Kirby, the puffball who had always been the nicest thing she could have ever met, could contain evil. It was just not possible.

"Yes, I'm gonna beat you and be free for good." replied Shadow Kirby, his transformation finally complete

Standing before the two puffballs was Shadow Kirby's rock form. The dark copy resembled a boulder with arms, legs, and a face plastered on it. A wicked smile appeared on the face that adorned his new form as he smashed his arms together to pump himself up.

"If you don't want to get hurt you better move." he told Jigglypuff, "'Cause here I _COME!_" he roared charging them

Shadow Kirby was surprisingly fast as he stomped his way over to Kirby and Jigglypuff, his heavy steps kicking up snow each time they hit the ground.

"This won't be fun." replied Kirby, brandishing his hammer

* * *

A trio of men could be seen walking down one of the many halls of the bandit fortress. Their destination was what was deemed as the Vehicle room, which, as the name suggest, housed the many vehicles employed by the bandits. However, even though their destination was the Vehicle room, their thoughts were not focused on what was within the room, but of something else.

"I don't like this leader, not one bit." replied the club wielding bandit known as Malamute, "You can't possibly trust that girl!?" he exclaimed

"For once, I agree with Malamute." replied Sakhalin, "The feeling I received from her was truly worrisome."

"Doesn't matter. Don't think we can do much about her anyways." replied Chinook

"What is her deal anyway and what about that eye?" Malamute inquired, "I've never see nothing like that before."

"Recently I have been hearing reports from out scout albatrosses that many small villages have been destroyed. Completely and utterly wiped out by a mysterious force."

"So you think she's the one doing it?" Malamute asked

"I'm not sure, but coupled with the defeat of Popo Aisu Kuraimā, and the fact that she easily invaded our fortress, I can guess that she may have some connection with these events."

"All da more reason we follow what she wants, fa now." replied Chinook, "We don't need ta pick a fight wid her if she's dat strong. And beside, we got our own plans. Don't need 'em getting messed up cause of some freaky little girl." he told them, "But just in case we do need to fight, I want the SCT Quamutik ready for battle." he replied

"You sure you want to go all out like that leader?"

"If dat little girl can destroy entire villages, we gonna need the power of the SCT Quamutik." he said, opening the doors to the Vehicle room

Within the room that housed all the bandits mediums of transportation, ranging from simple trucks that carried supplies, to more assault type vehicle, stood the bandits' most prized vehicle. The SCT Quamutik, a heavily armed and armored snowbound attack vehicle. Sporting a 150mm cannon designed to fire cannonballs out of a spiral cannon head, to allow better accuracy and stability along with to side harpoon guns and a track system designed to easily roll over snow. But what truly helps this machine stand out is its ability to 'climb' over more rugged terrain, a.k.a. rocks. The SCT Quamutik had only just been finished, both in creation and in testing, but it was ready for active deployment, which was something Chinook was counting on.

"By mid-day tomorrow I wants everything ready fa a full attack on Aurora Canyon." Chinook replied

"You're really going through with that little girl's plan?" Malamute asked

"Like I said, don't have much of a choice, do we?" Chinook replied, "Besides..." he said, a grin forming on his face, "...if we take Aurora Canyon we'll be strong enough to take on even Hiehie Village if we want." he said, "So what if we gotta listen ta a little girl fa the time being...I don't care, long as I get what's coming ta me...and get my revenge." he chuckled, his laugh echoing the halls of the Vehicle room

* * *

_POW!!_

Jigglypuff and Kirby narrowly escaped being crushed as snow rose up after the monstrous impact from a punch thrown by Shadow Kirby in his rock mode. Both Smashers took refuge in the sky, hoping to buy themselves some time as they tried to figure out away to defeat such a strong opponent.

"Jumping in the air...won't work." replied Shadow Kirby, "I may be a rock but..." he said, bending down slightly, before lifting into the air with surprising jumping ability, "I'm not slow!" he yelled, reaching Kirby and Jigglypuff's height in moments

"So high!" Kirby thought, barely dodging Shadow Kirby's tackle

Kirby watched as gravity quickly took hold of Shadow Kirby, bringing him down to the snowy earth. But instead of simply landing he quickly curled into a ball, his arms and legs sinking into his rocky exterior. Much like his giant snowball form Shadow Kirby began spinning, although with more traction on the snow his spinning was not quite as great, though his size seemed to make up for that disadvantage as he plowed through an old nearby building effortlessly. But he was not the only one who decided to curl up into a ball and roll madly across the snow. With blinding speed Jigglypuff spun toward Shadow Kirby in a head-on-collision.

_KER-BLAM!!_

The impact was monstrous, but unlike before, Shadow Kirby was the victory of this collision.

"Puff!" grunted Jigglypuff, the impact forcing her out of her Rollout

Following up with the head-on-collision Shadow Kirby uncurled form his rolling boulder form and smashed his body weight into Jigglypuff, knocking her way with a powerful shoulder tackle. He watched as Jigglypuff tumbled away, eventually smashing into a large pole sticking out of the ground. She slowly slumped to the ground, the wood splintered on the point of impact.

"I'm not just normal rock." replied Shadow Kirby, "The stuff I'm made of is pretty tough." he told her, "You're strong, but you don't have the hardness to break me. So just sit back and wait. I don't want to hurt you."

"Jiggly..." murmured Jigglypuff, straining to rise

With a big grunt the balloon Pokemon managed to rise to her pillow-like feet. She felt sore, but nothing she couldn't ignore. Luckily the balloon Pokemon was tougher than she looked.

"Hmm...?" murmured Shadow Kirby, smiling at Jigglypuff's fortitude

The dark double was so preoccupied by Jigglypuff he almost didn't notice Kirby trying to come at him from his blind spot, hammer ready. Shadow Kirby hopped away, managing to avoid Kirby's initial strike, but could not move fast enough to dodge the second, that came in a round-about fashion. Unfortunately the second hit was more of a passing glance than an actually full on attack so the most it did was throw Shadow Kirby off balance. Shadow Kirby stumbled back for a bit, but quickly regained his footing, but not before Kirby launched himself at Shadow Kirby with a hard side shoulder tackle. The moment Shadow Kirby managed to set his feet firmly on the ground Kirby smashed into him and while the attack itself did little to hurt Shadow Kirby it was enough to disorientate the rocky enemy. A flurry of rapid fire punches came soon after, the rocky hide of Shadow Kirby pelted by the vicious barrage. But to Shadow Kirby the attack was nothing more than a mosquito bite against his hardy exterior.

"That won't work." replied Shadow Kirby, launching a punch at Kirby

Kirby dodged mid-attack, ducking under the blow before returning to unleashing another volley of rapid-fire punches.

"Again?" Shadow Kirby wondered, trying to punch Kirby again

Once again Kirby dodged, sliding to the side, and let loose with another pummeling rapid fire attack.

"This won't work." Shadow Kirby replied, until he noticed something odd

While the attacks themselves hadn't changed up much, the speed at which they came had gradually increased. And with that increase came the true meaning behind Kirby's blows. As Kirby pummeled Shadow Kirby, Shadow Kirby soon felt his balance wavering and soon enough he was pushed back slightly. Shadow Kirby's eyes widened at this and he was quick to react to this strange occurrence, his left arm retracting into his body. Once again Shadow Kirby could feel himself being pushed back, but before Kirby could gain any ground with his barrage Shadow Kirby's fist came flying from an odd angle, one at which Kirby couldn't dodge and Shadow Kirby grabbed hold of his pink counterpart.

"Take this!" Shadow Kirby yelled, bringing his arm back before slamming Kirby full force into the ground.

_BLAM!!_

"Jiggly..." Shadow Kirby heard, looking up to the source of the noise, "Puff!" yelled the pink Pokemon, smashing her foot into Shadow Kirby

Shadow Kirby was forced to step back to keep his balance and in turn forced to let go of Kirby.

"She's strong." he thought, "But she still can't break me."

"Huwah!" yelled Kirby, swinging his hammer up at Shadow Kirby

"How'd he get up so fast!?" Shadow Kirby wondered, too off balanced from Jigglypuff's earlier attack to counter

The hammer traveled upward, smashing into Shadow Kirby's face and throwing him back, though he stood his ground, digging his feet into the ground to keep stable.

"Jiggly!" yelled Jigglypuff, hitting Shadow Kirby from behind with another powerful kick

"Errrr..." he growled, sliding his left foot forward and to the right to stay standing

But just as he turned his foot Kirby came with a kick to his right side that forced Shadow Kirby to overshoot his movement. Shadow Kirby's right leg slipped from under him and he fell, having little choice but to abandon countering Kirby and catch himself by thrusting his arms to the ground and using them to hold up his body weight. But Shadow Kirby quickly pushed himself to his feet moments later, but as he looked up he was met with two small plush feet to the face.

_WHAM!!_

The impact sent the dark double back, but with a solid step he was able to retain his balance.

"I've had it." he growled, clenching what would constitute as fists for Shadow Kirby

"Jiggly!" growled Jigglypuff, curling into a ball and spinning

In response Shadow Kirby curled up as well and began to spin, becoming a rolling rocky wrecking ball. Both rolling balls barreled toward one another, kicking up white fluff as they drove over the ground. Their rolling showdown mirrored their last confrontation, except that Jigglypuff veered off course before they collided.

"Hmm?" Shadow Kirby thought, turning to chase after the rolling puff

Truthfully the shadowy doppelganger did not want to hurt Jigglypuff. She wasn't his enemy, but Jigglypuff wasn't going to back down. Hopefully he'd be able to take her out without really hurting her. The stone behemoth picked up speed as he chased after Jigglypuff, disregarding anything in his path, obliterating it on impact with this rocky hide.

As Jigglypuff passed a large cart she performed a near 90 degree turn near an oncoming pole and it was at this point that Kirby jumped over her, hammer at the ready, and swung as Shadow Kirby advanced. The large rock creature smashed through the pole as Kirby came into range, Kirby's hammer making its way toward Shadow Kirby. Swinging with all his might Kirby smashed his hammer into Shadow Kirby's hard exterior, but at the speed Shadow Kirby was rolling Kirby's attack barely slowed down the living boulder. Instead the mighty mallet of Kirby was ripped from the gumball's hand and sent spiraling away.

The shock from the blow caused Kirby to tumble away while Shadow Kirby continued to roll on. But before he realized it, he was at his top speed and still could not catch up to Jigglypuff. More so, Jigglypuff was actually pulling away from Shadow Kirby, putting some distance between herself and the grey copycat in the process. Jigglypuff blasted past her downed steed, rolled out of the town, moving so quickly that Shadow Kirby couldn't even keep up with the snow left in her wake. She quickly turned around and without skipping a beat planted herself in one spot and began to spin even faster than before, kicking up a wave of snow until she tunneled down to the barren earth.

As the dark boulder rumbled over to Jigglypuff, the pink puffball shot from the hole it had made in the ground, becoming a screaming missile on a one way course toward Shadow Kirby. Shadow Kirby showed no signs of slowing down, his confidence high over his ability to overpower Jigglypuff. But it was that very confidence that struck such a deep blow when he and Jigglypuff collided for the third time in the fight.

_KER-PLOW!!_

The impact was thunderous, creating a deafening shock-wave. The power of the blow caused the air pressure around the two to increase before the compression of force was released in a furious display, blowing snow from the surrounding area until all that was left was a five foot radius of barren earth. Jigglypuff skidded away, the snow proving to be ill-suited for traction as the powerful blow pushed her back. She grunted as she slid back, the blow having quite the effect on her light form. Shadow Kirby fared far better than the female Pokemon, his heavy frame digging into the snow and stopping him only after he skidded a few inches from the impact zone. But even so he had not come out of the attack unscathed.

"No...way..." he murmured, watching as Jigglypuff finally came to a stop over fifteen feet away, "She actually..." he murmured, a piece of his rock armor chipping away, "...broke through..."

Cracks spread out from the point of impact until enough had formed to cause more pieces of rock to chip away from Shadow Kirby. Soon chunks of rock began to fall apart as his structural integrity failed. His arms and legs broke apart from the main body, falling in a heap beside him. Soon enough the once mighty stone fighter had been reduced to a pile of rocks by the pink puffball known as Jigglypuff.

"Oh..." Shadow Kirby groaned, climbing out from the rock debris, "How'd she do that?" Shadow Kirby wondered, as he climbed out

It shouldn't have been possible for Jigglypuff to break through his rock armor. Her body was far lighter than his and nowhere near as hard. And yet she had busted through, and from the looks of it was still ready to do battle. Shadow Kirby glanced to his side and noticed that Kirby had retrieved his hammer and was ready to go on the offensive again.

"She's strong." he thought, his gaze moving back toward Jigglypuff, "And he's not bad either." he thought, referring to Kirby "I can't handle them at the same time...I'll have to leave for now." he thought, "Shadow Star!" he yelled

The two pink puffballs only hesitated for a second as Shadow Kirby yelled to the heavens, but they were quick to go on the advance, charging Shadow Kirby. But the little grey gumball was quite crafty, slamming an electrically charged fist into the snow.

Not only did the blow send snow skyward, but the electricity kept Jigglypuff and Kirby at bay as it danced about wildly, mixing with the snow to create a brilliant, if not dangerous, light display. By the time it had settled down Shadow Kirby was already on the Shadow Star, heading skyward.

"We'll fight again!" yelled Shadow Kirby, "But next time it'll just be me and you!" he yelled, taking off high into the sky

Kirby would have chased after the rogue emotion, but instead he simply looked on as Shadow Kirby took to the skies.

"Kirby going after Kirby?" Jigglypuff inquired, wondering as to why Kirby was simply standing there and letting Shadow Kirby get away

"I'm hungry." Kirby replied, his only answer to her question

Jigglypuff stumbled back in bewilderment. But after a moment she smiled. She would have hit him for being so single-minded, but that's what she loved about the Star Warrior. Kirby was just being his overly hungry self and while his hunger could hit him at the most inopportune times, Jigglypuff wouldn't have him change that about him for the world.

"Jiggly..." she murmured, giggling slightly, "Let's find others."

"Hmm?" Kirby murmured, "Oh...okay!" he cheered, "They'll probably have something to eat!" he happily proclaimed

Jigglypuff giggled again. That was Kirby for you.

The early morning sun shone over the vast white landscape of Nesh, illuminating the snowy expanse in a bright light. As the bright light of the morning sun washed over the landscape the sound of engines could be heard as three snow-based vehicles raced across the frozen tundra. Divided amongst the three snow-vehicles were the Smashers, along with Tealeaf, Robert, Bridget, and three drivers. The vehicles moved in a sort of delta formation, with the lead vehicle containing Tealeaf, Zelda, Marth, Popo, and Nana.

"Tealeaf, if it would not be rude of me to ask, what is the purpose behind this Aurorae Polaris?" he asked, "Whatever it is it seems quite important to your village."

"Well, I don't mind telling you, but this is Popo's responsibility so you should really be asking him." she replied

Marth turned his head slightly to Popo who was sitting in front of him and somewhat to the right.

"It's okay Grandmamma." he replied, his voice low yet even, "It's not like they shouldn't know." he replied, "But its sorta hard to explain, could you tell them?" he asked with a nervous chuckle, "I mean, I barely understand it and I'm the one that's gotta do it." he replied with a lopsided grin

"Popo..." she groaned, shaking her head in disdain, "If you're going to be the head of the village one day then you need to take things more seriously." she replied

"Yeah...the head." he replied, a hint of uncertainty hidden within his words

"Very well." she sighed, "But I guess even the head of the village can be a little absentminded as well. I mean, even I'm not entirely sure what the Aurorae Polaris actually does." she replied, a smile gracing her features

"Thanks Grandmamma." Popo replied, returning her smile with one of his own

"Anything for my grandson." she replied, "Besides, I can't just rely on Nana's children to love me unconditionally, you are part of the package too." she replied

"Grandmamma!" both climbers yelled exasperatedly

"Sorry, sorry!" she giggled, having fun at her grand-children's expense, "Though I cannot wait to see who you decide to marry." she replied, before leaning in close so that only Popo could hear, "I cannot say much for Nana, but I predict that you will have a wife of the utmost prestige. As well as having the skill to defeat you in combat." she replied

"Grandmamma!"

"Okay, okay!" she chuckled

Zelda did her best to keep from laughing, but with the powers of the mind that she possessed she had gotten the gist of what Tealeaf had said to the young climber, and for her she thought it was quite amusing.

"Well then, since I see its okay, I will tell you the purpose of the Aurorae Polaris." Tealeaf replied, "I suppose I should start off with what is basically does." she replied, "In a nutshell it is a way to determine the strength of a Weather Caster." she replied, "But that's not all it represents." she replied, "The true meaning behind the Aurorae Polaris is not in what is does for any single person, but what it does for the entire Nesh region."

* * *

There are seven different copy abilities in _Kirby 64_, and any two can be merged to create a new copy ability. They are Burn, Stone, Ice, Needle, Bomb, Spark, and Cutter. They will be a basis for Shadow Kirby's powers. A quamutik is an Inuit dog sled and SCT stands for Super Cool Tank.

Next chapter will be an in-depth analysis of the Aurorae Polaris and what is actually does. This is where the true plot of the story comes to light, along with a few more battles and some surprising revelations. Stay tuned.


	13. Influence Part 7

Here is the next chapter in one of my longest chronicle exert. Hope you all are enjoying the story.

* * *

In a time long before Hiehie village came into being the region of Nesh was an untamed wilderness where desolation and fear ran rampant across the land. There was no place for one to call home, only nomadic travelers looking for meaning across white plains of nothingness. The hope for survival in such a harsh and unforgiving land looked bleak, but when all seemed hopeless a beacon of light shone across the heavens, illuminating the entirety of the Nesh region. In the night sky a rainbow aura danced wildly above as if life had been given to the empty sky. Across the region of Nesh the nomadic travelers looked to the sky and marveled at the sight bestowed upon them. So mesmerized by such an event many wanderers of Nesh gathered to the origin of this light, following an innate sense of direction as they discovered what would then be called Aurora Canyon. Within the canyon were gathered a group of outsiders. These strange visitors, who seemed to command the very elements surrounded a strange machine, their hands reaching up to the skies, their bodies and the machine glowing in a similar manner to the magnificent lights above. Soon these mysterious strangers would be known as the Weather Casters and the machine called the Aurorae Polaris.

As more and more wanderers gathered in Aurora Canyon they discovered that the Aurorae Polaris did more than simply produce lights within the sky. It's calm, ethereal presence created a sense of serenity and tranquility among the many inhabitants of the Nesh regions. Squabbles and misunderstandings that lead to fighting were washed away as long as the light spread across the region. And through the gathering of the many factions within Nesh, the fear of the unknown was dispelled for the time being and divided people proposed to be as one, to try and make the harsh land livable. Thus Aurora Canyon, home to the Aurorae Polaris, became the first village of the Nesh region.

Eventually the Aurorae Polaris was shut down and the light that bathed the Nesh region disappeared, but its influence had not. Gathering resources and working together the people developed Aurora Canyon, the only safe haven within the unforgiving land. The Weather Casters helped as well, using their gifts to manipulate the weather and create conditions for fertile grounds in order to grow, what would later be Hiehie Villages most prized possession, vegetables. Many animals came, tempted by the smell of the new crops and eventually the people tamed many of the wild beasts of Nesh, herding the once frightful creatures for food, clothing, and (in some cases) companions.

As Aurora Canyon grew, so did the influence and prestige of the Weather Casters. Many idolized the Weather Casters and some even worshiped them as avatars sent by the gods. The powers of the Weather Casters were truly beyond anything the Nesh inhabitants could imagine and thus they were seen as beyond human. But even so, there were many that feared the Weather Casters, believing that their only reason for helping the people of Nesh was to rule over them. The reason behind this fear was that no one knew where the Weather Casters had come from. While the Weather Casters did everything in their power to help the villagers, even risking their live in an attempt to better their fellow compatriots, they staunchly refused to reveal anything about their origins, or how they acquired their powers, or even the inner workings of the Aurorae Polaris. It seemed strange that the Weather Casters would not divulged anything to the people, as if they had something to hide. This caused distrust of them by many and just as Aurora Canyon had became the home that the people had wished for, the canyon had become divided between those who worshiped the Weather Casters and those who scorned them.

Squabbles erupted across the canyon and eventually the canyon had been divided into three sections. The two largest were of the worshipers and the abhorrers. The final group was of the Weather Casters themselves, who did not want to be involved in the in fighting of Aurora Canyon. At first things seemed to calm down. With the groups divided they kept their distance from one another, but eventually fear and misunderstanding took root and the villagers grew tense. The contempt on both sides grew by the day until a single incident caused an outbreak of fear. A small child of the Weather Casters had wandered into the camp of the Abhorrers and accidentally froze one of the villagers. It was not the child's fault, for the child had only recently discover her powers and had no clue of their strength. Even though the villager frozen ended up making a full recovery, the Abhorrers did not accept this, believing this was a deliberate attempt to belittle them by proposing that the Weather Casters believed that even their children were more powerful than they. The Worshipers fought back against this statement, calling the claims of the Abhorrers' ludicrous and spiteful. They commented on how the Abhorrers were blind to the true power of the Weather Casters and if the child had truly wanted to, could have ended the man's life in an instant. It was only through the child's sympathy and pity that the man survived. This only proved to stir up more conflict and from that day forward both sides became even more wary of one another.

Soon the two sides took up arms, wanting defense against the others in case either one should attack one another. The Weather Casters looked on, yet they still did not choose a side. However the Weather Casters knew that it would only take a small spark to light the fuse of war, a war, which if waged, would decimate the canyon and revert the people of Nesh back to their dark beginnings. The Weather Casters, stayed the neutral ground and tried to make peace talks with the sides, but years of fear and anger had festered within the groups and all talks of peace were ignored. It would only be a matter of time before the two sides erupted and the fighting began. Many of the Weather Casters proposed that they should leave and allow the sides to work out their differences on their own terms. If they could not come to peace agreements with one another there as no point for the Weather Casters to be caught in the crossfire of the two groups. However, the chief of the Weather Casters, one whose knowledge of Weather Casting had no rival, did not agree with this proposal. If they had simply left the Weather Casters would have been no better than the two sides. They would have been running away from their problems rather than dealing with them and whether intentional or not the fighting between the two sides had been the fault of the Weather Casters and it was their duty to right the wrong they had committed.

One night, almost fifty years after the creation of Aurora Canyon, it was obvious that the two sides would engage one another in battle, as cries of protest and anger filled the night sky. In light of this many of the Weather Casters retreated to the inner most section of the canyon, where the Aurorae Polaris stood and gathered about it. Only two of them did not join their fellow Casters, instead making their way to the two divide sides. Weapons were raised in the air as rage overtook the two sides, but when each saw a single Weather Caster blocking their way confusion was created. As the two Weather Casters stood in front of the opposing sides, separating them by a few yards they spoke, earning a chilled reaction by the Abhorrers and Worshipers.

"Whoever crosses this line..." they began, creating a line on the ground on their respective sides, "...will receive no mercy."

Both sides wondered why the Weather Casters would impede them. The Abhorrers stating that the Weather Casters were showing their true colors while the Worshipers wondering why their avatars would stand in the way of dealing with heretics. Their response to these statements was simple and decisive.

"We came only to help the people of this region find peace and happiness." they told them, "We swore that we would fight against anything or anyone that would want to destroy that happiness, even against the very people we swore that promise to."

Anger erupted on both sides, but the two Weather Casters would not budge. It became clear that if something had not been done the Weather Casters would have been forced to fight against the people and even though it was only two of them they were more than a match for the two opposing sides. Luckily, before any casualties could be counted the dormant Aurorae Polaris came to life and like fifty years earlier it bathed the heavens with its magnificent glow. As the villagers looked up the hate that was driving them smoldered and the fear that gripped their hearts vanished. The Weather Casters had once again brought light to the darkness and save the region of Nesh from near annihilation

With hate and fear gone the two sides were able to peacefully talk with one another about not only the future of Aurora Canyon but of the entire Nesh region. It became clear to the Weather Casters that their power was too omnipotent for the people and that living together became impossible. Even though the Weather Casters had done everything in their power to help the people of Nesh rise above their dark beginnings the Weather Casters knew it was time for them to split from the masses. It was decided that the villagers would head out to the other areas of the Nesh region and create homes elsewhere. Meanwhile the Weather Casters would be isolated within the canyon, cut off from the others to become the silent watchers of the people of Nesh.

Not all the Weather Casters stayed within the canyon, as one or two followed the many groups of travelers to help them establish villages around Nesh, one of those villages being Hiehie.

It was not only the isolation of the Weather Casters that had happened on that day, but also a tradition to represent the hope of peace through the Nesh region. Every fifty years the Weather Casters gather at Aurora Canyon and activate the Aurorae Polaris, to allow its light to spread across the sky. It is this light that preserves the hope that the Nesh region will continue to thrive and prosper no matter what ill fate may befall it.

* * *

"The activation of the Aurorae Polaris is more than just to test the strength of a Weather Caster, but to remind the people of Nesh just how they came to be and what it takes to keep the peace." replied Tealeaf, "But in doing so the Weather Casters must become separated from much of Nesh."

"Is that why you two left?" Zelda asked Popo and Nana, "The village I mean."

"Yeah." replied Popo, his gaze drifting off to the scenery that rapidly passed by, "We weren't Popo and Nana living in the village, just the newest Weather Casters." he replied

"Same with mom and dad..." murmured Nana in a near inaudible tone

"What was that dear?" asked Tealeaf "Is something wrong?"

"Nothing Grandmamma." replied Nana, veiling her feelings with a smile

"Okay." she replied with a smile before turning her attention back to Zelda, "Once Bridget and Robert track down your friends' scents it'll only be a matter of time before we find them."

It didn't take as much time as the Smashers had thought to reach the area where Kirby and Jigglypuff had first disappeared. The WSVs (winter service vehicles) they were on were quite fast and moved across the snow at a rapid pace. Soon the Smashers had reached their destination, the three snow vehicles stopping a few feet way from the train tracks of the Nesh Region Train. Climbing out onto the white snow that covered the ground, Robert and Bridget quickly put their noses to work, searching for scents and trying to differentiate each one to try and locate Kirby or Jigglypuff's own unique odors.

"Hmm...there are more scents wafting about than I imagined." Robert commented, his head swaying to and fro, "I smell many of the bandits that were thrown off in the struggle, along with even stranger smells." he replied, "No matter though, I do remember the scent of that balloon friend of yours. I should be able to locate it in no time."

"You sure?" asked Falco, leaning against one of the WSVs, "There was a storm out here, the scent might have been blown away."

"You may not be able to trace their scent my avian friend, but nothing escapes from our senses." replied Robert

"Indeed dear." replied Bridget, "A wolf's sense of smell is nearly unrivaled. And ours is of the highest merit." she replied

"Yeah, yeah." muttered Falco, releasing an unnecessarily large yawn, "If anyone needs me I'll be asleep." he replied, closing his eyes

"What a lazy, lazy bird person." Bridget muttered, shaking her head in disdain

"I do hope that you find you friends, and I apologize but we really need to be going." replied Tealeaf, bowing her head in shame for not being able to stay and help

"No, no." replied Zelda, dismissing the inconvenience with a wave of her hand, "You've done enough just by helping us get here. You have your own duties to perform."

With a nod of agreement Tealeaf felt some relief over the matter and walked over to her grandchildren.

"Come, it is time to go." she replied

"Right Grandmamma." they replied, "See ya!" they called to the Smashers

A chorus of different goodbyes came from the group of warriors as the three residents of Hiehie Village took their leave, taking the lead WSV. The Smashers watched the vehicle disappear into the distance, though Zelda in particular held a look of concern as the three left. When they were out of sight she sighed quietly to herself, watching as her breath became visible in the cold air.

"Is something the matter?" asked Bridget, hearing Zelda's piteous sigh

"It is nothing you need to be concerned with." replied Zelda, her tone emphasizing she meant no ill-will toward the comment

"By any chance were you thinking about the fate of the Weather Casters?" Bridget asked

Zelda did not reply but then again she didn't need to.

"It is a sorrowful fate actually." Bridget thought out loud, ceasing her activities for the time being, "The very people that brought Nesh from the depths of darkness are pushed away because of their powers." she said, "But I suppose fear of the unknown is strong with all."

"You know..." replied Zelda, "We never did get to finish hearing that story you were telling." she replied, "I think I speak for everyone here that we would like to hear the ending."

"Well...I suppose." replied Bridget, looking over to her husband as he busily searched for the correct scents, "It shouldn't be a problem. Gather round." she said, taking a seat in the snow

The Smashers, excluding Falco all took position around the white wolf, seating themselves in the white fluff that encircled them. Sitting on the cold ground was a lot more comfortable that they would have imagined, with the warmth of their winter attire heating their hindquarters.

"Can you use a different flashback intro this time?" Ness asked, "Like a white out?"

"I'm actually more partial to the fading intro, but I'll humor you." she replied, and thus as she began her tail she humored the psychic boy with a white out

(Whiteout)

**In the battle between the mysterious female and Damien it soon became obvious to Damien that he and the woman were evenly matched. So his chance for a smooth victory was futile, leaving him no choice but to resort to less than honorably tricks to steal the victory. The woman had forced the bandit leader back toward his men, where busy dealing with Douglass. Damien stole a glance at his men and grimaced at the sight of Douglass tearing his way through the bandit ranks. While the Weather Caster didn't end any of the lives of the bandits that battled him, he didn't hold back, freezing many of them wear they stood and showing off some impressive hand-to-hand combat.**

**Douglass rushed a particular bandit wielding a large hammer. The bandit attempted to swing his weapon at Douglass, but the Weather Caster was quicker, punching through the wooden handle of the hammer and smashing his fist into the bandit's abdomen. The Weather Caster then heard a blade slice through the air and ducked as a large knife passed over his head. The bandit that had swung at him tried to thrust his blade forward, but Douglass was a step quicker, blocking the bandit's hand with his left and twisting, causing the bandit to yelp in pain and drop his blade. Two more bandits came at his side, just as a third came from behind the bandit he was currently dealing with. Flipping the bandit in his grip he threw the man into the bandit approaching in front and dashed toward the bandit to his left, slamming his palm into the adversaries chest and freezing him. As ice encroached the man's body the final bandit to charge lit the fuse of a bomb in his hand and chucked it at Douglass. Douglass ducked under the bomb and kicked it into the air before the fuse was spent and sweep his feet along the ground, creating a wave of snow and ice to smash into the bomb-throwing bandit and freeze him as well.**

**Many of the remaining bandits grew hesitant as Douglass rose to his feet. He had already dealt with a large portion of their numbers and with the fact that he had just taken on four of them as once gave them the feeling that they weren't much of a match for him.**

**"I'll give you one chance." Douglass declared, "Take your allies and leave or I will finish the lot of you off."**

**The bandits dare not back away however. Now while Douglass was a quite the threat, Damien was a danger all his own and none of them had the courage to face Damien's wrath should they back down from the battle. With determination brought about by fear of punishment the bandits tightened their grips on their weapons and stood their ground. Douglass simply sighed and clenched his fist. He was hoping to not have to fight any longer but it seemed the bandits would give him no choice**

**"Very well then." he replied, ice flowing about his clenched hands, "Come at me if you plan on killing me."**

**The bandits charged, their footsteps heavy atop the snow. Douglass stayed in place, the increased intensity of his powers the only indication that he was preparing something.**

**"I didn't want to do this but you leave me with no choice." he replied, slamming his right fist into the snow, "Iceberg!"**

**The ground rumbled but before the bandits could even hope to figure out what was happening their answer came at them in the form of a violent expansion of ice. Upon contact with the rise column of ice the bandits were encased in ice as well as launched back due to the force of the rising ice. Damien looked in astonishment at the devastation of his entire group of followers, watching as they were made to look like children against a true force of nature.**

**"Unreal." murmured the veiled woman, "This is his power?"**

**Douglass rose from his crouching position, the spent ice in his right hand dissipating in the air, though his left arm seemed more then capable to deal out more devastation.**

**"You, the leader." replied Douglass, his back turned to Damien, "I would tend to your men if I were you. They aren't in danger of losing their lives, but being frozen in ice would be traumatic for anyone." he told Damien, "Also, I would leave after doing so or you will receive my left hand." he said, turning to the man, his left fist rising to put emphasis on that statement**

**"You...think you are above me just because of those powers?" Damien growled, "You're nothing!" he barked**

**"And you're wrong." Douglass replied, "I am not above you because of my powers. No, if anything they make me less human than you. No, the reason I'm above you is that I do not based my being on power or the ability to wield it, but because of what I do with it." he replied, "I didn't want to fight you or your men. But you are using you power to attack an innocent village."**

**"Still think you will win this hero?" Damien cackled, "Even without my men I can still win this battle."**

**"I'm no hero." Douglass replied, "If I was I would have been able to tell people that I am a Weather Caster." he said, "I'm weak...that is why I lost the woman I love."**

**"Oh...you're right about being weak." Damien commented, "And let me show you why." he said, pulling out a strange vial with an unknown liquid inside**

**"No..." gasped the veiled woman, "Are you insane, don't use that!?"**

**"I had a feeling you knew more about Carmelo than you let on." Damien replied, "This used to belong to him and he only showed it to people he trusted."**

**"What is that?" Douglass demanded**

**"It is a special concoction created from the root of a Altude. It can give anyone who drinks it incredible power...but at a price." the woman replied**

**"Yes..." replied Damien, popping the top off the vial, "But you do not have to worry about me, I have been studying Carmelo's notes, I know what to expect." he said, drinking some of the liquid within**

**"This is not good." she murmured, "I have to stop him before it begins." she said, racing toward Damien with her hammers at her side**

**As the bandit leader pulled the vial away from his mouth he could feel an incredible surge of energy rise within him. His muscles grew taut and harder, eventually growing in size. The woman lunged into the air and swung, aiming for the bandit's head. He glanced at her, watching as the hammer closed in. But before she could land a powerful blow he ducked down, letting the weapon pass over him. As she flew above he reached for her and grabbed hold of her parka, pulling her through the air with incredible speed. Before she knew it she was launched through the air by the powerful arms of the bandit. Luckily, instead of crashing into the snow below, she was caught by Douglass who had ran into the path of her flight.**

**"Are you okay?" he asked, trying to see if the woman was unhurt**

**However all Douglass could see was the woman's eyes, as much of her face was covered by her parka.**

**"I am fine." she retorted, almost pushing away from Douglass and getting to her feet**

**"Not for long." replied a voice**

**She turned only to see Damien in front of her, his fist pulled back for a punch.**

**"So fast..." she thought, trying to back away**

**It was all she could do to back away enough to avoid a disastrous blow from Damien. Douglass tried to intervene as the punch grazed the woman, but Damien was faster, launching a kick toward Damien's ribs. Douglass blocked the blow, but even so the attack tore through his guard and sent his skidding back across the snow.**

**"Pretty strong." Douglass thought, glancing over toward the woman**

**The woman had landed on her feet, still gripping her hammers, glaring at Damien as he rested his foot on the ground.**

**"This is unbelievable, to think Carmelo came this far! I only had a little to drink and I'm already beginning to dominate you!"**

**"Don't think this battle is over!" yelled the woman, "You will lose."**

**"Really?" Damien chuckled, "Well I suppose I should make sure that never happens." he said, "Taking another swig from the vial."**

**"We should fight him together." Douglass proclaimed, "We'll be better off."**

**"I don't need you." the woman replied, rushing Damien again**

**"She's stubborn...but also familiar." he thought, rushing Damien as well**

"I found the scent!" yelled a certain white wolf, interrupting the story Bridget was telling, "It is of the balloon creature!" he announced triumphantly

**"Dear, you found the scent! Stupendous!"** Bridget replied

"Wait a moment, were you telling more of the story without me?" he asked

**"Why would you say that?"**

"You are still in narrator mode." he replied

**"Oh my, I apologize."** she replied, **"You do indeed like telling stories."** she replied, **"Let me get out of narrator mode for now."**

"No, it is fine." he replied, "You tell the story just as well as I do." he commented, "By the way, where in the story are you?"

"Oh, I am nearing the decisive part of the story." she replied

"Oh, after the drinking of the Altude root eh?" he murmured, "I do enjoy that part of the story, the fighting and all, but we will have to postpone it for the meantime, we have a scent to follow."

"Right dear, lead the way."

* * *

Driving through a mountainous region of Nesh the occupants of a certain snow vehicle could see the their sacred destination come into view. Surrounded by the mountains that hid it from the outside world of Nesh rested Aurora Canyon, birthplace of Nesh civilization and home to the Weather Casters.

"So this is Aurora Canyon?" murmured Popo, in awe at the sight

Before this, Popo could only imagine what Aurora Canyon might look like and still his imagination hadn't grasped the sheer majesty that the area exuded. Unlike the snowy land that surrounded its mountain home, Aurora Canyon was devoid of any frozen water. The ground was filled with lush green grass and the air was warm, almost too warm to be wearing parkas. It was the strangest change in climate that Popo had ever experience, almost as if Aurora Canyon didn't follow the same weather cycle as the rest of the Nesh region. Flowers littered much of the grassy landscape, with a lake resting near the western section of the canyon. The actual village consisted of different buildings spread across the entirety of the valley. And within the middle of the canyon rested the reason why Popo was there, the Aurorae Polaris.

The symbol of the Weather Casters, standing at full height of over thirty stories, consisted of six large metallic towers in a circle around a center generator. The generator was connected to the towers by six large control cables that feed power into them. The generator itself was hexagonal in appearance and half the height of the towers, spreading about the ground and held in place by large bolts. Popo couldn't tell from his distance, but there looked to be a large building that encompassed the very middle of the machine, which he guessed all the controls of it must had been. But for all its size and complexity it looked worn and decrepit, contrasting sharply with the vibrant buildings that lay across the valley. But it was only expected, the machine had to be hundreds of years old. But the fact that it was still operational paid tribute to its importance and durability.

"This place is awesome!" Nana exclaimed, her head darting to and fro as she tried to take in all the sights before her

"Yes...this is...home." replied Tealeaf, her voice quivering with a returning home feeling in her heart

"This place is...something else alright." replied Popo, his words simple yet meaning so much

"Hello Tealeaf!" they heard someone call

The WSV stopped a few feet in front of the person, a man, and Tealeaf climbed out, waving to the man as she did.

"Well hello, long time no see." she replied

"Yes, it's been quite some time Tealeaf." he replied, "How many years has it been?"

"I'd say about fifteen or so." she replied, "And it looks like time hasn't been very generous towards you for those fifteen years."

"And you're just as beautiful as the day me meet, right?" he replied, though his voice dripped with sarcasm

She caught on but didn't let the man's wit get to her.

"Well I am beautiful." she replied, "I age gracefully."

"I see. And these two would be Popo and Nana, correct?"

Tealeaf nodded and at that smile appeared on the man's face.

"Well hello children. I can only guess you grandmother has told you all about me." he replied, waiting for what he believed to be beaming admiration from the two children

"Uh...no." replied Popo

"We haven't a clue who you are." replied Nana

The man nearly tripped out of shock, but caught himself before he could face plant.

"You haven't told them about me!?" he shrieked

"You never came up." replied Tealeaf

"That's you answer!?"

She nodded and he slapped his palm against his forehead frustration. Eventually though he sighed and scratched his wild, graying hair.

"I guess it is not that big of a concern." he replied, "But still, do they even know my name?" he asked

"No."

"To think that even their parents would never mention me." he mumbled, "Where did I go wrong?"

"Come, come. We have more important things to do than listen to you whine about being forgotten." Tealeaf replied

"Yes, yes." he mumbled, "I've heard _plenty_ about young Popo and his duties." he replied, "Come this way."

Popo and Nana exited the vehicle and followed after their grandmother and the strange man, heading toward the village.

"Oh, by the way." the man asked, halting for a moment, "Did you bring the 'Treasure of the Weather Casters'?" he asked

"Yes." she replied, "We have the 'key'."

"Good." he replied, turning back around, "First we need to meet up with the rest of the village so that they can see the heirs, then we can begin the ceremony." he said, "I think you kids are going to like this place, especially since everyone has been wanting to meet with you for some time."

* * *

"My, my. These old bones aren't what they use to." replied Robert, as he ran through the frozen expanse, "I use to be able to move so much more quickly than this."

"Time may have had its way with us, but we're not out of this world by a long shot." replied Bridget, following along side of her husband, "Besides, we must lead these young ones to their friends as thanks for all they've done."

"That is a given." replied Robert, "And as long as I am able I will keep with this scent until we find them." he replied

"Now that is the wolf I married." Bridget replied

As the two wolves raced across the snowy tundra, two WSVs followed behind.

"We've gone quite a long way." replied Zelda, "I wonder just where Kirby and Jigglypuff are?"

"We passed a forest just a while ago and now we're in this snowy plain, they could be anywhere." replied Marth

"Or, they could be right there." replied Falco, pointing toward a strange sight

A little ways off a large creature lay in the snow, asleep. Its body was quite hairy, though some of its fur looked singed, as if it had been burned recently. Atop of the beast's rising and falling chest were two pink entities, also sleeping soundly, and small sleeping caps adorning their heads.

"Thank the goddesses they are alright." Zelda sighed in relief

"Told you they'd be fine." replied Falco, "And look, they even got themselves a pet." he replied

"I wouldn't consider that thing a pet." replied Marth

Even though everything looked okay, the drivers of the WSVs would not go any further than thirty feet from the hairy behemoth out of fear of enraging it. So the Smashers had no choice but to get off and walk the rest of the short distance over to the colossal beast to go and wake their friends.

"Kirby, Jigglypuff!" Zelda called, "Wake up!"

Kirby fumbled in his sleep, but the gumball did not wake at Zelda's words.

Falco sighed and picked up a rock that he found on the ground. With a simple flick of his wrist he sent the small stone hurtling towards Kirby, where it flew swiftly and soon enough collided painfully.

POW!

"Ow!" Kirby screeched, bolting upright at the sharp pain

In the same instance he woke up Jigglypuff, who moaned in a semi-conscious state.

"Jiggly?" she questioned, rubbing her eyes, "What happened?"

"It's raining rocks!" Kirby yelled, picking up the very weapon used again him and throwing it in a blind rage

The problem with this was that his aim was wild and directed toward a certain blue-haired prince. Marth noticed it however and deflected the hard projectile with a wave of his hand.

"I am the target of Falco's actions?" he questioned, "I wonder where the fairness in that is?"

"You didn't have to throw that." replied Zelda, "They would have woken up eventually."

"Yeah, I know, but they were taking too long."

Zelda sighed, and then created a small flame in her hand.

"Din's Fire!"

While Falco was busy being launched through the air due to the force of Zelda's explosion Marth, Ness, DK, Robert, and Bridget calmly walked over to the awakening puffballs, their footsteps slow in order not to disturb the slumbering beast that the two puffballs were using as a bed.

"Hey guys, what's up?" Ness asked, waving to the two pink balls

"Hey, it's you guys!" Kirby replied cheerfully, "Did you know its raining rocks out here, be careful." he replied, his gaze traveling up to see if anymore rocks would fall

"Yeah..." Marth chuckled uneasily, turning back to see Zelda launching another Din's Fire at Falco while the avian pilot dodged, "Raining rocks..."

"What are you guys doing here?" Kirby asked

"Looking for you." replied DK, "After train."

A feeling of guilt washed over the pink Pokemon known as Jigglypuff. Her ears drooped slightly as she heaved a heavy sigh.

"Jiggly..." she murmured, "Sorry."

"No, no." replied Marth, "Bridget and Robert explained the urgency of the situation."

"Yes." replied Robert, "So there is no need for an apology. By the way, whatever happened to that doppelganger fellow anyway?" he asked

"Yeah, who is he?" Ness asked

"Well...he's me." replied Kirby

"Huh?"

"He's an other me."

"Proper sentence structure please." Marth asked

"Er...he's Shadow Kirby and he was a part of me once, but now he's not."

"How'd that happen?" Ness asked

"Well...you see...hmm..." he murmured, trying to think up a plausible answer

"Actually, the explanation is not that great of importance." replied Marth, "It is just a relief that you are okay." he replied

"Oh, okay." replied Kirby, "So, when do we eat?" he asked

"Yes, it is quite the relief that you are okay." Marth chuckled, "But I have to ask, where did this come from?" he asked, referring to the mammoth yeti

"Jigglypuff find Fred." Jigglypuff replied

"Fred?" asked Marth, "You named it, Fred?"

Jigglypuff nodded her head.

"Well...I can accept that."

"Jiggly...wake up Fred." she called

With large rumble the large creature opened its eyes and yawned loudly. The Smashers slowly back away from the creature as it lifted itself up, Jigglypuff and Kirby hopping off as it rose to its feet. When it was at its full height it looked down and immediately glared at the Smashers, a tooth showing from its mouth as it growled at them in disdain. The Smashers cringed at this but before anything could happen Jigglypuff calmed the hairy beast.

"It okay." she replied, "Friends?" she replied with a smile

Fred seemed to understand her for only a few moments after she announced that the Smashers were her friends the glare from the beast disappeared. Then it gave DK a look over and grunted something to the primate. DK jumped back, cringing.

"What's the matter, what he say to you?" Ness asked

"Not he, she, and she say 'Hey Cutie." DK replied, before grunting back a response, which caused the large creature to moan in sadness

"That's a girl!?" Ness gasped, looking up at the mammoth thing

"Wow..." murmured Jigglypuff, "Guess Jigglypuff should change name." she said, "Fran."

"Perfect." muttered Marth, "You know you can't keep that thing." he said

"Jiggly know." Jigglypuff replied, "Jiggly have to go Fran." she replied solemnly

Fran understood, but smiled the best she could toward Jigglypuff to show that even though they were separating they would still be friends.

"Bye." Jigglypuff waved as she caught up with the others who were already heading back toward the WSVs

Fran waved as well as Jigglypuff and Kirby hopped into the snow vehicles and took off. As Fran grew smaller and smaller in the distance Jigglypuff, who was seated with Zelda, Marth and Falco wondered where Popo and Nana were.

"They're at Aurora Canyon." Zelda replied

"Jiggly?" the puffball question

Zelda gave a quick explanation of the Aurora Canyon and its purpose to Jigglypuff, filling in the necessary parts so that the puffball could understand the gist of its meaning.

"Jiggly want to see Aurorae Polaris!" she exclaimed, the thought of a machine that could control the weather quite interesting for her

"I'm not sure...though I can't believe that it would be wrong for us to go." Zelda replied, "Do you think?" she asked the driver

"I can't think of a reason why not. To be even told about the ceremony is an honor, so you and your friends are more than welcome to attend." he said, "If you wish, I can take you there."

"I guess, though just to be sure we'll ask Tealeaf when we get there."

"Hmm?" murmured Falco, noticing something in the distance

"What is the matter?" Marth asked

"I see something...weird." he replied

"Weird how?"

"Well, would you constitute a little girl floating through the air with a large eyeball next to her and a large convoy of trucks trailing behind her as strange?" Falco asked

"What!?"

* * *

Traversing the snow at a relatively fast speed was a convoy of WSVs, each varying in size. The convoy was busy following a floating white haired girl and a giant floating eyeball. In one of the lead WSVs sat three bandits. In the driver's seat sat a bandit decked in a yellow parka, also known as the pick-wielding Sakhalin. In the seat directly behind him was an orange clothed bandit who held a large hammer in her grip, named Samoyed. In the passenger seat on Sakhalin's right sat the club-swinging, green parka wearing bandit, or Malamute, who from Sakhalin's view was shaking erratically.

"Why are you shaking?" asked Sakhalin, "Are you fearful?"

"Me, afraid, naw." replied Malamute, "Just anxious. We're taking on Aurora Canyon!"

"Yes. It is quite the feat for anyone. This will not be a quick battle."

"I've always wanted to tangle with those Weather Casters, and to think we'll be battling them in a few hours!"

"Do not become overconfident, the Weather Casters are by no means pushovers."

"That's why I want to fight them. They think they are so powerful, but now they're about to go down!"

"I guess fate has handed us an advantage." Sakhalin replied, "For I don't believe even the Weather Casters have the power to deal with that little girl."

Said little girl was sporting a devilish grin upon her face as she looked forward to the destruction she would be causing in only a few hours.

"Nesh is going be no more." she said, "I was left in darkness and now it Nesh's turn."

* * *

I sorta like this chapter since it explains more about the story. And WSV or Winter Service Vehicles are real, look them up on wikipedia (Damn I love wikipedia!).


	14. Influence Part 8

The next set of chapters will be the clinchers, as the plot finally unravels. I hope that you enjoy this one and the ones to come.

* * *

Being relative loners, Popo and Nana were not particularly comfortable around big groups. Much of that had changed after they joined the Smashers, but every so often they became horribly embarrassed around large audiences, say, some Smash Brother fans dogging them for autographs. This was no different as they walked into the main square of Aurora Canyon and were swept up in the crowd of Weather Casters that had come to see them. From young to old they flocked, each with their own questions and comments about the two latest additions to their grand little village.

"So you're Popo and Nana Aisu Kuraimā?" asked a woman around her mid-forties, who seemed to the leader of the large group, "It's an honor to meet you." she replied

"Hi." replied Nana

"But I must ask, were are you parents?" she asked, "Or at least you father?" she included, "As a fellow caster I would think for sure he would be here to take part in this ceremony

Nana and Popo turned downcast, her eyes now glued to the fertile ground at their feet. But before Popo and Nana could wallow in the fact that their parents were not present, Tealeaf intervened.

"The parents of Popo and Nana are currently out of the region with important business. They regret they could not come for this momentous event, but what they are doing takes precedent."

"Over the activation of the Aurorae Polaris?" the woman asked, "What could possible be that much more important?"

"It is not a matter to be discussed but know that it is indeed crucially important."

"Very well." the woman replied, though she still looked rather flabbergasted, "First let us go over the formalities while the Aurorae Polaris is set for the ceremony." she replied, "The chief will probably want to speak with you as soon as possible, but still, take you time, we are in no rush." she said, before turning her attention to the gather crowd, "Come, come now. There will be plenty of time to speak with the Kuraimās later. Please, move on and prepare yourself for the ceremony." the woman told them

Moans and groans came from the gather group, but it seemed that the woman's words were law for after a few seconds the crowd dispersed, leaving only a few stragglers wandering about.

"Now then, I should be going as well, I need to prepare anyway." the woman replied, "When you are ready you should meet the chief." she replied, before she herself took leave

"Thank you." Tealeaf replied to her retreating form, before turning to Popo and Nana, "I think I will have a word with the chief. Why don't you two have a little fun while I'm away?" she suggested, "You can talk with some of the other Weather Casters your age."

"Sure." they mumbled, though they didn't sound as eager as Tealeaf had hoped

Tealeaf knew that the mentioning of their parents would get them down, though she had a plan to counter such an occurrence. For instance, she knew that Nana loved flowers. This was a joy the young child discovered by seeing the small variety in Hiehie Village.

"Nana, why aren't those Bermuda Buttercups and Scarlet Pimpernel?" Tealeaf asked, pointing over to a large field

The field was filled with a rainbow of different colored flowers with breeds far and beyond anything within the Nesh region. Many of the flowers had been brought from outside the Nesh region and planted in Aurora Canyon, the only place warm enough for the flowers to grow. The young climber looked off in the direction her grandmother was point and her expression did a complete 180.

"Wow! There' Spanish Oysters and even Calla Lilies!" she replied, "Those aren't even suppose to be able to grow in the same area!" she said, rushing over to examine the strange cross of breeds

Nana sprinted over to the field, leaving her brother and grandmother behind as her mind raced with the possibility of documenting rare breeds of flowers that she may not have known about. Luckily she had brought her field journal just for that instance.

"Grandmamma?" Popo called after Nana was far off, "What exactly is gonna happen?" he asked

"Well, to put it plainly, you will lead the ceremony with the 'key'." she replied

"What is this key?" he asked

"I see, I haven't told you that. In order for the Aurorae Polaris to be activated you need the use of a special key. It is called the Spear of Meteorol." she replied

"Wait...? I've heard of that." he replied, "Isn't it suppose to be some super special weapon?" he asked, "Pop told me about it once." he replied

"Well I guess he didn't explain it that well for it is more than just a weapon." she replied, "It is a focusing device, used in a variety of ways in manipulating Weather Casting abilities." she replied, "But a full explanation will have to wait." she told him, "Why don't you run off?"

Popo mumbled something unintelligible under his breath, though by way of his body language Tealeaf could tell he was still a little down in the dumps. However Tealeaf also knew a lot about Popo, especially how he liked to show off sometimes.

"Hey, Granny Angakkun!" called a voice

"Hmm?" she murmured, turning to the voice and spotting a boy running toward her, "Oh, it's you Mesolow." she replied

"How you doing Granny Angakkun?" he asked as came up to Popo and Tealeaf, "I just heard that the heirs were here but I couldn't come out cause my mom made me finish doing my chores." he replied

"I'm fine, but must you add 'Granny' to the title?" she asked, "I don't care much for 'Angakkun' and 'Granny' makes me feel old."

"But you _are_ old." the boy replied

Tealeaf sighed at the remark, wondering why the boy's parent's hadn't taught him to have a little more respect for his elders, but let it pass, knowing that this boy would be great for lifting Popo's spirits.

"I would like you to met my grandson Popo." she replied, "He's quite the little climber, and one of the most powerful Weather Casters around." she said

"Most powerful?" the boy asked, raising an eyebrow

Tealeaf smirked. While she had only known Mesolow for a short while, being that she only visited Aurora Canyon sparsely, she knew that he was a very competitive person and was prone to taking interest in those that could potentially rival him.

"This is a secret, but he is also part of a group of fighters with incredible strength." she replied, "Only the finest of warriors are allowed to enter."

"Him?" Mesolow questioned, "But I'm older!" he exclaimed

"Age doesn't always determine ones strength." she replied, "Popo is much more powerful than he appears."

"Really?" Mesolow murmured, "Still though, he can't be that strong if he's wound up like that." he replied, referring to Popo's injuries

Popo groaned, yet he did not defend himself against the comment. Tealeaf wondered why he was so unwilling to divulge anything about how he obtained these injuries. Even when she asked him about them on the ride to the canyon, all he would tell her was that he had gotten into a scuffle with a strange girl and had accidentally been thrown off a cliff. While his explanation had dispelled the rumors about him being utterly defeated in battle by some rouge figure, Tealeaf could see that there was more to his story than he was letting on. However, she did not probe, believing that Popo would tell her the entire story in due time.

"Injured or not, I still think you would be hard-pressed trying to defeat him in battle." she said

"He can't be that good."

"Just have a friendly battle with him." she replied, "Popo might show you a thing or two."

"Really, well I'd like to see that in action." the boy replied, "Hey, you want to have a quick match?" he asked

"Well...I guess..." mumbled Popo

"Go on ahead Popo." she replied, "I mean, unless you don't think you're up to it." Tealeaf question, "But, your grandmamma knows you have it in you." she replied

She could see the smile on his face forming and knew that Popo was brightening to the idea. All she needed to do was sweeten the deal.

"Oh, well why don't you two have that match while I talk to the chief." she replied, and to sweeten the deal, "If you win I'll cook you my famous vegetable soup." she replied

"Really!?" he asked, the excitement lingering in his voice

"Absolutely." she replied

"Alright then, let's go." Popo replied, turning to Mesolow

"You two have fun now, but don't go and hurt yourselves." she replied, taking her leave

"You ready?" Mesolow asked, stepping a few feet back from Popo

"Yep." replied Popo

"You better not disappoint me kid."

* * *

"Can you still see them Falco?" asked Zelda

"Yeah, clear as a bell." he replied

"Oh, what I would give to have your eyes right now." she replied

"This is probably an obvious question but, I wonder what they're up to, and with all those trucks?" Falco asked

"They seem like they are going to war." replied Marth, "Their formation is similar to those on horseback." he replied

"If I may, it seems they are heading toward Aurora Canyon." replied the driver, easily recognizing the path they were taking

"They couldn't possibly be thinking of attacking...could they?" Zelda wondered

"I cannot say for sure, but if they are it would be a foolish venture. Aurora Canyon is home to nearly every Weather Caster in the region and there are quite a lot of them."

"Maybe, but then again, there is that girl." replied Marth, "No matter how powerful they may be these bandits would not have considered attacking now if they didn't believe they could win."

"This isn't good." Zelda said distressed, "We need to find a way to slow them down, or at least warn the Weather Casters of their arrival." she replied

"It would not be a very good idea to engage them in battle at the moment. They outnumber us as well as having that strange girl with them and until we can ascertain her exact abilities we cannot be sure we can defeat her." replied Marth

"There is a quicker way to the canyon." the driver replied, "But it is also more treacherous." he told them

"Treacherous...as in life threatening?" Falco asked

"Yes."

"Sounds needlessly dangerous, but fun." he replied

To that the driver gave Falco an odd look.

"What our blue friend is trying to say is that no matter how treacherous it may be we are willing to venture forth." Marth replied

"Okay then, hang on." he replied, relaying a message to the other WSV before putting his foot to the pedal

The large snow mobile shot off with a sudden boost of speed that even surprised the Smashers as they could do little more than held tight.

"Waahoo!" Ness cheered as they took off

* * *

"Gully Squall!"

"Pamperos!"

Two incredible forces of wind collided with considerable force, causing a backlash on both sides before the weather attacks dissipated into nothing. Putting his right foot forward Popo took the powerful gust of wind that came his way while his opponent stood against the blast in a much more relaxed manner.

"Not bad kid, but don't tell me that was too much for you?" Domenico asked, "If you want, we can quit. Don't want to aggravate that arm."

"Nope." replied Popo, his mallet resting lazily across his shoulder

"Well then, come with it."

"If you want me to." replied Popo, dashing toward Domenico moments later

Mesolow had to admit that Popo was quite fast, though it wasn't anything that Mesolow couldn't counter as he sidestepped a hammer swing aimed at his side. But Popo was not about to let his opponent get away and stepped into his miss, allowing him to follow up with another swing toward Mesolow's legs. The boy hopped over Popo's attack, throwing his hand forward and releasing a ball of ice toward Popo. Popo smashed the ice ball with his mallet, letting the ice shower over him, but another ice ball coming in at an odd angle caught him off guard, forcing him to back away to avoid being hit. It was Domenico's turn to be on the offensive as he backed Popo away, alternating between ice balls and other weather-based attacks.

"Brubu!" Mesolow barked, unleashing a low-to-the-ground weather attack

Popo jumped up to avoid the blow, but did not realize that this was all part of Mesolow's plan. It was not until Popo saw ice flowing about Mesolow's hands did he realize that he had fallen into the older boy's trap.

"Squamish!" Mesolow yelled, firing a wave of ice toward Popo

Putting his mallet up to block Popo took the attack head on, feeling the tingly chill of ice flowing over his body.

"Got'em. Now to finish him off." Domenico thought, concentrating air and water into his palm, "Barat!"

The mighty wave of wind and ice flew over Popo, descending upon him as he himself descended to the ground. From the standpoint of bystanders it would seem that Mesolow had the upper has as his attack began to engulf Popo, but the blue-parka wearing Smasher still had a few tricks up his sleeve. Breaking free of his icy prison the young boy pulled his mallet back before firing it forth with power and skill.

"Squall Boomerang!"

The hammering weapon spun furiously through the air, bypassing the squall heading toward Popo and homed in on Mesolow. The Weather Caster jumped to the side, nearly avoiding the attack, but put himself directly in the path of Popo, whose good arm was held back as he ran toward Domenico.

"Derecho!" yelled Popo, throwing his arm forward and releasing his weather attack

The speed of Popo's attack was overwhelming, engulfing Domenico before he had the chance to counter the attack. Domenico's legs were frozen to the ground in an instant with Popo barreling down on him from in front.

"I'm stuck, but that kid will never reach me before my attack hits." Mesolow thought, grinning as his Barat descended on Popo

Without stopping Popo pulled his arm back, before launching it skyward, though to the naked eye nothing seemed to come from his hand. In actuality a powerful updraft of air came from his hand, disrupting the descending Barat and dissipating much into nothing more than a cool breeze.

"No way, he disrupted it that quickly!" Mesolow yelled, just as Popo met up with him

The older child struggled fruitlessly against his bounds after seeing his attack destroyed and in his desperation the ice about his feet cracked a little, but it was far too late to stop Popo from launching a punch his way. The young ice climber's fist collided with Mesolow's face, knocking him from him icy prison and sending him back a few feet.

"The kid's pretty strong too, but I can still..." Mesolow began

_WHAM!_

The older Weather Caster felt a sharp pain in the back of his head, his world going fuzzy moments later. That's when he noticed something fly into Popo's hand. Forcing himself to focus, he not only saw what flew into Popo's hand, but in the same instance figured out why he was going down.

"I should have realized it. It's like a boomerang, it comes back." he replied before hitting the dirt

Darkness swept his entire being for what seemed like an eternity. Eventually though the light returned to him, illuminating his world. As his eyes opened he was greeted with the color green and quickly realized that he was face down in the grass.

"Err...ugh..." groaned Mesolow, turning over onto his back

"You okay?" he heard a voice ask, quickly seeing it to be the voice of Popo

"Yeah...I'm fine, just a little headache." replied Mesolow, "You know, you're pretty strong, stronger than me even."

"I just got a little lucky." replied Popo, helping Mesolow to his feet

"Luck nothing." he replied, "You outclassed me, even while you were injured _and_ used Derecho." Mesolow mentioned, "Not too many Weather Casters can use that move." he replied

"Heh, heh...thanks." Popo chuckled, feeling a sense of pride welling up inside him

"I've got a long way to go if I can't even beat a kid as hurt as you." Mesolow told him

"It's only a few broken ribs and my arm." replied Popo, feeling as if Mesolow, as well as everyone else, was making a big fuss over his injuries

"Still, I'm going to get better and then we're gonna have another match when you're at peak condition." Mesolow replied

"Heh, heh...gotcha." Popo chuckled once again

"Popo! Nana!" ushered a call

Popo turned his head to the call as Nana rose from her frolicking among the flowers, looking off into the direction of the voice. It was their grandmother calling them from afar, waving her hand to show them where she was exactly.

"Come, the chief really wants to meet you." she said

"Coming Grandmamma!" they called in unison

Waving goodbye to his newest rival Popo ran up to his grandmother, with his sister catching up a few moments later.

"The chief really wants to meet you two." she replied, "He says that there is something very important he wants to discuss with you."

As they began their trek the two little climbers took great interest in the village that the Weather Caster's called home. They marveled at the fact that the buildings that encompassed the village were something different than what Popo and Nana were accustomed to. Unlike the wood that dominated much of the homes of the Nesh region, the homes of the Weather Casters were built with a different material, marble. The village was a rainbow of different color marble, each unique and perfectly cut to give a practical though eye-catching design.

"It's something isn't it?" Tealeaf asked, noticing her grandchildren looking about

"Why are they made of marble?" Nana asked, recognizing the mineral content of the buildings "It can't be very warm."

"With the weather here being fair for the entirety of the year it's okay for the homes to be made of marble."

"Why is it like that?" Popo asked, "Why doesn't it snow? It's like this place has its own weather."

"You've hit the nail on the head." she replied, "The weather around here is different than from the rest of the region."

"How?"

"Hmm...how to explain?" she pondered, trying to come up with a reasonable explanation, "Er...think about...a hurricane." she replied

Popo and Nana raised an eyebrow at this. Even though the Nesh Region was too cold to support any high scale tropical storms, the twin climbers knew about hurricanes and such from stories their grandmother had told them about. But they could not fathom why she would use a hurricane to explain the strange weather phenomenon around Aurora Canyon.

"Hurricanes contain an 'eye', where there are no clouds or wind, right?"

They nodded their heads in agreement, understanding that much.

"Just think of Aurora Canyon as being the eye of the Nesh region." she replied

"Really?" asked Popo, interested

"The air about the entire region flows around Aurora Canyon." she replied, "Because of this it creates an area of sinking air where clouds do not form." she explained, "Unlike the rest of the region, Aurora Canyon stays rather balanced, never being too cold or too hot." she told them, "I know it is not much, but it is the best way I can explain this." she replied

"I sorta get it." Nana replied, a least having some clue as to how this could occur

"Yeah..." replied Popo, though he sounded less convinced than his sister

"Well, here we are." Tealeaf replied, presenting Popo and Nana to the chief's home

While not much different than the buildings that surrounded it, though being of a different color of marble, the chief's home was larger than what Popo and Nana expected. Truth be told, it looked as if the chief's home was a cluster of different homes pieced together, a labyrinth of sorts.

"This place sure is..." Nana began, trying to find the right word for the building

"Weird?" her brother finished, his own thoughts bewildered by the structure before him

"It may be weird, but this is where the chief as well as other members of the Caster Circle live." Tealeaf replied

"Caster Circle?" Popo wondered

With Tealeaf in the lead Popo and Nana followed their grandmother into the strange building which, as they thought, seemed to be a conglomerate of different buildings in one. The group walked into a hallway that branched off to the other buildings that encompassed the main area. It was much like the Great Assembly Hall in Hiehie village, though on a much larger and grander scale.

"Hello!" called Popo, marveling at the fact that his voice echoed through the halls, "Cool!"

"Popo! Mind you manners!" Tealeaf hissed, ashamed at his lack of decency, "People work here and yelling like that is rude." she told him

"Sorry." he replied, "But this place is huge!"

"That is still no excuse for that." she scolded, "Letting them live alone probably wasn't the best of ideas." she thought, shaking her head disdainfully

"Well, well...now this would be a prime example of the cauldron calling the kettle black. Especially for one who does not like being called by her proper title." said a voice, causing the group to turn to it in response, "Hello Tealeaf."

"Hello to you Australis. How are you?" Tealeaf asked

"As well as I will ever be." the woman replied, "Though I will say that age is beginning to catch up with me." she replied

"Quiet that talk." Tealeaf interjected, "Remember, 'one is only as old as they believe they are'." she told her, "Besides, if anyone should complain about old age it is I. I am older than you after all."

"Oh, do not think I am talking about my end." Australis replied, "I still have some time left in this life. I am just saying that I have lost a little of my zest. But I apologize about worrying you." she said, before turning her attention to Popo and Nana, "Oh, pardon me, I have been rude. I haven't even introduced myself." she replied, "I am Australis Aurora, the Southern Dawn." she replied

"Hi...I'm Popo." replied Popo, his eye's wide

"And...I'm Nana." replied Nana, her mouth hanging open

"What is wrong children?" Australis asked, sensing their uneasiness

"That." Popo replied, pointing to the object strapped to the old woman's back

"Oh, you mean this." she replied, taking hold of what looked like a double-sided axe

Though this was no ordinary axe as the weapon was nearly as big as she was and at least twice her weight. And this was not even taking into account the handle which was almost half her height.

"Is something wrong with it?" she asked, "I sharpened it this morning."

"But it's huge!" Popo pointed out, perplexed

"I know." the woman replied as if it was general knowledge, "I mean, I made it." she replied, "I've had this for a least twenty years now." she murmured, reminiscing

"Whoa..." he murmured, his eyes still glued to the weapon

"But never mind that children." she replied, "You must come and meet the chief. He's with my brother at the moment." she told them, "This way." she said, motioning them to follow her

Now following behind this newest Weather Caster, Popo, Nana and Tealeaf were lead to two doors. Upon opening the doors the group were introduced to a large room, a library of sorts. Books lined the walls, filling nearly every available inch of space with literature. Even the windows that let sunlight beam in contain a few books, wedged within corners. It didn't take a rocket scientist to realize that the chief of the Weather Caster's enjoyed reading or at the very least had to read a lot. Near the end of the room sat a large desk, filled with books much like the walls and window, and near that desk stood a man, who oddly resembled Australis in appearance. Also much like the Southern Dawn the man wore on his back an overly large weapon, this one being a large javelin.

"Hello there sister, are these the Aisu Kuraimās?" asked a man standing in front of a large desk

"Yes." she replied, "But where is the chief?" she asked

"Yes, I was only talking with him a few minutes ago? Where could he have gone?" Tealeaf wondered

"He has gone to the back room to look for a book he says he needs." the man replied, "I swear, the man has no organization skills whatsoever and yet he is the leader of the Weather Casters." he said, "Fate can be twisted sometimes."

"I do not believe in fate brother." replied Australis, "But I do believe in duty and no matter how disorganized the chief may be, he is a true leader for the Weather Casters. He has proven this time and time again." she replied

"I know..." he muttered, "Though I wish he was not so scatterbrained all the time."

"I heard that Borealis!" yelled a voice, from a back room, "And I am not scatterbrained...simply absentminded sometimes."

"Oh yes..." Borealis muttered, "_Very_ absentminded."

"No matter." the man said, coming from out of the back room, "Oh, seems that everyone is finally here." he replied, looking about the room

"Yes." replied Australis, "Popo, Nana, I would like you to meet my brother, Borealis Aurora the Northern Dawn and chief of the Weather Casters, Aeolus the Central Wind." she replied

"Hey." replied Borealis

"Hello there children. I have wanted to meet you for a while. You know, you two are a spitting image of your parents." he replied

Popo and Nana did not respond to this comment, thus Aeolus took it as understanding and continued on.

"But you are probably wondering what is going on with the ceremony and such." he replied, "And by explaining to you I will not be able to read this book that I have been searching for diligently." he replied, "I mean, it's a really good book and I've been searching for it for days and..."

"_Ahem..._" murmured Borealis, clearing his voice

"Oh...sorry, I sort of rambled there didn't I?" he asked, "Age can do that to a person...I mean I remember this one time..."

"Damn you Aeolus, get to the point!" Borealis barked, inciting a gasp from all present...well, all but Australis, who took hold of her axe with one hand and held it out dangerously close to her brother

"Normally I do not mind you shooting your mouth of at the chief Borealis. But this time we have honored guests so you _will_ hold you tongue or I will for you...either figuratively or literally...your choice." she said

"Hey, as if that will happen." he growled, brandishing his javelin, "But if you really want to kick the bucket, I can wait five minutes."

Australis growled at the crack at her age, her grip on her axe tightening with each passing second.

"You're no young than I am brother, so if you want to talk about age you would be wise to look in a mirror!" she snapped

Tealeaf, Nana, and Popo all took a step back, eyes still wide. It always unnerved Tealeaf that Australis and Borealis treated one another in such a manner, openly threatening each other. True, Borealis had been out of line, but even that didn't warrant the response she had given.

"Do not worry." replied Aeolus, sensing their worry, "They do this from time to time." he replied, "While I'll be the first to admit that _brother and sister should not bicker like this_, it is nothing new." he replied, "Now then, stop this foolishness so that I can finish explain things." he replied

"Very well..." replied Borealis, "You old fool." he added under his breath

"What was that!?" barked Australis, "Haven't I told you not to insult the chief!"

"Well make me!"

"I will!"

"Good luck!"

"Why you!"

Aeolus sighed, knowing this could go on for quite a while and decided to stop it then and there.

"**_ENOUGH!!_**"

His voice bellowed, the atmosphere in the room cooled drastically, and murderous intent coming from Aeolus was double that of what Borealis and Australis had been exuding. For a split moment Popo had a feeling that one of the reasons why this man was made chief of the Weather Casters was because of his authoritative presence. Borealis and Australis stopped their bickering immediately, put their weapons away, and stood at attention, fully focused on the man standing before them.

"As you wish." they said in unison, all signs of anger toward one another gone

"Thank you." he replied, his composure returning, "I wish I didn't have to do that every time you two get into a scuffle." he replied, the room returning to its normal temperature, "Now then, shall we begin?" he asked, facing Popo and Nana

* * *

The drivers of the WSVs were not kidding when they said the alternative path to Aurora Canyon was treacherous. Driving alongside two adjacent glaciers, thirty stories in height was quite the venture for the Smashers. The large, enclosed space gave the Smashers an eerie overwhelming feeling. As if the walls would close in on them at any moment.

"Eventually, this path will be completely gone when these two glaciers collide." replied the driver of the lead WSV, "The path is not normally used because of this fact. I myself have only gone through the path three times before this." he told them, "Also parts of the walls collapse without warning, making it foolhardy to simple drive through without care." he replied

"Have they ever fallen when you've drove through?" Ness called from the second WSV

"Not that I can recall." the driver called back, "But like I said, the walls _can_ collapse without warning so being careful is still a priority."

"Oh boy..." murmured Ness, looking up toward the glacier walls

"Oh...do not worry my young friend." replied Robert, "We will be fine as long as we keep out beliefs strong. I mean, what could be the chance that the walls would collapse now?" he asked, chuckling

_...rumble..._

"What was that?" Ness asked

"Oh...look." replied Bridget, pointing up to a particular piece of wall, "I suppose we've run into a spot of bad luck."

A large crack that had formed had finally reached the top of the glacier wall, bits of ice chipping away as gravity began to take hold.

"Oh boy..." Ness shuddered, eyes going wide

_FWHOOSH!!_

* * *

Gully Squall, Brubu, Squamishe, Pamperos, Barat, and Derecho are types of squalls. Please don't hate me for my bogus weather forecasting. This is all for the sake of the storyline.


End file.
